One day there is a mass killing and then the next day it is forgotten. Killings have happened so frequently that people don’t really take them as seriously as they should. People seem to forget that killing people for fun is not a fun thing. People seem to have made it into a game with no winner. There are also a lot people who get inspired and become copycats. Everything from terrorist attacks to school shootings. All this seems to happen one after another. One year it is a bomb that kills dozens and then a school shooting that kills hundreds. The worst thing of it is that killers seem to be idealized as heroes.

In the 1980s to the 1990s and even now, drugs were and are a major cause of death–whether it be overdoses or crimes related to drug trade. In the 1980s, the first major crack epidemic took place. The criminal rate was high and people died seemingly every day. Who was the head behind the crack epidemic? The man that everyone seems to know–Pablo Escobar. He was a major drug dealer that shook the history of narcotics. The toll from the Escobar period still seems to affect us today from copycats that try to live the Escobar lifestyle. The death toll from 1980 to 2008 is around 36,500 from overdoses. The rest of the killing was due to violent crimes and robberies.

Escobar was a popular criminal, but he was not the first. In the roaring 20’s the crime rate was at a all time high. Going from a 78% increase in homicide rate in prohibition America to another 24% increase in 1921. In the Roaring 20’s, people killed for money in the alcoholic trade.  Like Pablo, there were a lot of people who tried to live lavish lifestyles from other people’s misery. A place that has kept its reputation as one of the deadliest cities in the U.S since the 1920’s is Chicago.

Also known as “chiraq”most people have different names for this city like the “concrete jungle.” Chicago has had at least 400 murders in the past year alone. Not only that, but the worst mass killing in U.S. history to date happened not all that long ago. The Las Vegas massacre! It was a big deal at the time, but like most killings and terrorist attacks, it was quickly forgotten. Our very own Ms. Mathis from Birmingham was in attendance at the Harvest Music Festival when the shooting started. 

There are movies about famous drug dealers and mass murderers. Instead of helping the public avoid the life of drugs and murder, the movies seem to have the exact opposite effect. People see these movies and think what if? Some people see these movies and think it is a waste of time, but a few people view these movies as inspiration. In November of 2001 there was a murder of a young girl inspired by the movie Scream. People heard it and then later forgot it. People don’t take the murders as seriously as they should.

It is not only the movies that contribute to the murders, but the music that people listen to as well. The most common music like trap and rap are what the younger generations listen to. The songs are nothing but profanity and violence. In trap and rap, the lyrics only discuss threats and drug usage. People wonder why the drug usage is so high, but people are still listening to songs promoting drug usage. Drug usage leads to overdoses and addiction–which lead to death and murder for consumption.