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Guns in School
Niranjan S. Karnik (nkarnik@UX1.CSO.UIUC.EDU)
Fri, 25 Feb 1994 17:34:57 -0600
"feeling good" about one's self. It is more an issue of fear. These
children have fallen into vicious cycle of expecting violence, preparing
for violence, and thus creating violence. My own cultural explantion
revolves around the theory that a doinant culture as emerged in many
schools which is providing leadership and setting an example which others
follow due to need. See Elijah Anderson's _Streetwise_ for an explanation
of how the old culture of grandmother and grandfather led communities
collapsed.
The children know the difference between what is legally right and
wrong. In many cases a type of survival instinct overrides any fear of
legal or systemic ramification. They do not feel safe anywhere. Even in
the classroom, threats and abuse exist. Regardless of teachers' actions,
the children do not feel safe. Even if they are protected in class, they
face threats after school, at the playground or community center. They
thus conform to the dominant culture's behavior patterns in order to avoid
persecution from their peers. Compound these issues with a solid drug
culture. As if this isn't enough, the American media creates a fantasy
world which these children believe they will never live in. I think we are
beginning to realize that this problem is more complex than we ever
imagined.
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Niranjan S. Karnik "It is a good morning
Dept. of Sociology and Medical Scholars Program excercise for a research
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign scientist to discard a pet
326 Lincoln Hall hypothesis every day before
702 South Wright Street breakfast. It keeps him
Urbana, IL 61801 young."
-- Konrad Lorenz
email: nkarnik@ux1.cso.uiuc.edu
tel: (217) 351-1660 - home
(217) 333-1950 - dept.
(217) 333-5225 - fax
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