Andrew Ward | Argonaut
Oversized shoes, colorfully disturbing attire and malevolent intent is all it takes to spark fear across the country. Is this just a harmless prank for those with sour senses of humor, or an invitation for violence as the trend spreads?
The recent trend of menacing clowns initially began in South Carolina back in August. Since then, CBS has reported over a dozen people have been arrested in connection with the growing number of sightings as they sweep across the nation.
Threats to young children, college students and teachers alike have us on guard. However, there is also a growing number of false reports. There is an appropriate level of concern to be had, but I believe that this is nothing more than what I’ve already stated — a trend. While people should always bear in mind the dangers of the world around them, feeding into hysteria can only escalate the issue.
With a fear of the face-painted jesters stemming from the horrific crimes of John Wayne Gacy, to Stephen King’s movie “It” with Pennywise lurking in the phobias of many people, clowns have become less and less fun for more and more people.
Today, in the wake of countless threats, I would go so far as to say that going out at night in a clown costume would pose a serious risk to your public record and health.
I’m not in any way endorsing violence, but now that this following has amassed the attention that it has, there is no way to tell whether an individual is a twisted prankster or the potential perpetrator of a horrific crime.
Knowing that there is potential danger due to clowns has caused many people to ponder the safety of their environments. This could lead to stopping a crime, but it can also lead to other dangers — dangers that include false reports, wasting public resources and violent reactions from those who feel threatened. Since August, all of these negative results have been reported across the U.S.
Times Free Press reported that at the University of Connecticut, just before midnight on Oct. 3, hundreds of students armed with clubs, shovels and sporting equipment all met up at a nearby cemetery. The mob intended to serve a little street justice to a reported clown lurking among the headstones. Ultimately the report was a hoax, police said, but this is only one of many across the country.
These threats have to be taken seriously, and have even brought schools to the point of lockdowns and cancellations. But, just like in Connecticut, when a hoax has public support it can lead to an angry mob.
But proposed threats can be handled more effectively when law enforcement professionals have as many resources from their departments as possible. Whether they are spread due to multiple false sightings, or trying to defuse hundreds of outraged people looking for a witch hunt, people in mobs are not helping the situation.
Showing fear in the form of hunting down every hoax and wasting public resources on falsehoods is the name of these clowns’ sick game. Why? Because a response like that means panic, and panic is what make these clowns laugh and laugh.
Those who have been personally victimized or threatened by a clown should contact the proper authorities. Those who have posted false sightings, spread fear and wasted law enforcement resources have only enhanced the problem.
Who’s laughing now?
Andrew Ward
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