Violence in schools is unfortunately nothing new in America, but the issue has become particularly troubling in some cities plagued by rampant crime.
One notable example is Seattle, Washington, where students at multiple public schools were recently targeted by armed criminals.
SEATTLE- Last Nov. a vacant Burger King burned down after the homeless began living inside:
-2 businesses have since closed due to vandalism, break-ins & violence
-2 schools are located a block away
-The city has given no time as to when the building will be demolished pic.twitter.com/KWpcueMleM— Savanah Hernandez (@sav_says_) February 7, 2023
Masked muggers reportedly entered Auburn Riverside High School recently, triggering a lockdown and police intervention. Authorities say a total of five intruders gained access to the school after a student opened the door and let them in.
Elsewhere in Seattle, criminal gangs have reportedly waited for students to exit schools, robbing them of valuables as they attempted to walk home.
“I can probably name five or six people I know from Ballard who have actually encountered [the robbers],” a student from one school stated. “I feel pretty scared. It’s just crazy that this is happening so close to school, especially that it is with real guns.”
Another student, Cove Brammer, added: “I know they’ve jumped a few people. It’s a little scary because I walk home alone and I have my phone and my wallet.”
Henry Howisey said he knows students at the school have been attacked and robbed on multiple occasions, including recently when he was waiting for his friends and received a phone call that they had been mugged.
“They’re fine,” he said. “They just got things stolen. Usually, they get beat up pretty good, but they got lucky and they didn’t get hurt.”
Similar stories have emerged from Whitman Middle School.
Seattle has been a hotbed of criminal activity for years, peaking during a period of nationwide unrest that followed the death of George Floyd during an arrest in Minneapolis, Minnesota, in 2020.
An area of the city — known as the Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone — was essentially allowed to operate beyond the reach of law enforcement, which resulted in a predictable spike in violent crime.
Mayor Jenny Durkan was ultimately forced to acknowledge the fallacy of the social experiment.
Although she celebrated the “thousands of people” who supported the movement’s supposed “messages of equity and change,” the mayor added: “Unfortunately, that message has been undermined by the violence in the area. The area has increasingly attracted more individuals bent on division and violence, and it is risking the lives of individuals.”
