In 1999, the Columbine Massacre, committed by 17 year-old Dylan Klebold and 18 year-old Eric Harris, sent shockwaves across the United States. Motivated by a mix of misanthropy, nihilism, and a desire for some sort of revenge, they killed thirteen students and a teacher before turning the guns on themselves. Just eight days later, inspired by Columbine and persistent bullying, then-14 year-old Todd Cameron Smith entered his school with a rifle and began firing, killing one student and injuring another. This would be the first of a long, long line of copycats, dubbed the “Columbine Effect”. It’s no secret that the number of school shootings has only been rising, and yet despite this, few are investigating what’s radicalizing these kids to commit such horrific acts. In fact, if there’s one tradition as American as school shootings, it’s blaming said shootings on anything but the actual problem. When people were first scrambling to rationalize Columbine, many pointed fingers at rock music, the goth scene, video games, drugs, and some even theorized that Dylan and Eric were closeted homosexuals. If the title of this article reminds you of anything you might’ve seen on the news lately, you’re probably already aware this pattern continues today. While we might never know for sure what exactly radicalized Dylan and Eric, thanks to the internet, we can know what actually radicalized more recent shooters. On December 16th, 2024, 15 year-old Natalie ‘Samantha’ Rupnow entered her K-12 private Christian school with a gun, killing two, injuring six, and then killing herself. As of writing this, Natalie, of the three recent shooters I discuss in this article, has perhaps had the most misinformation spread regarding her identity. Because she also went by the name “Samantha”, many began spreading the idea that she was a transgender woman. On the opposite side, some pushed the idea that she was a trans-exclusionary radical feminist (TERF). Neither claims seem to be true, however, as she states in her manifesto that her inspirations for the shooting were neo-Nazi stabber Arda Küçükyetim, school shooter Pekka-Eric Auvinen, abuse from her parents, and general misanthropy. A month later, on January 22nd of 2025, 17 year-old Solomon Henderson shot and killed 16 year-old Josselin Escalante, fired some more shots randomly, and then shot himself. Aside from it being a horrific tragedy, the case drew a lot of attention for the fact that Solomon was, as he described himself, a Black Nazi sympathizer. In his manifesto, he repetitively uses the n-word to refer to himself, as well as Black people as a whole. Significantly, he refers to the No Lives Matter movement in large bold text, mentions "understanding” idolization of previous school shooters, and specifically mentions misanthropy as a motivator for the shooting. The movement mentioned by Solomon, No Lives Matter, or NLM, is an online neo-Nazi group with a sharp focus on misanthropy and radical nihilistic violence. They are known for using private messaging platforms to distribute guides on how to kill “mundane” people, and have stated they only accept “true misanthropic individuals” who do “IRL action”. On the 28th of August, 2025, 23 year-old Robin Westman killed two children, injured eighteen, and then, like the others, turned the gun on herself at the Annunciation Catholic Church. When it was discovered Robin was a trans woman, especially at a time when anti-trans rhetoric is arguably at its worst, the media seized on her gender as a cause for the shooting. In Robin’s own words, however, she stated “I do it to please myself. I do it because I am sick.” On her weapons were various racist, antisemitic, and pedicidal messages, as well as the names of past shooters. Allegedly, Robin, like Solomon, was involved with nihilist neo-Nazi accelerationist groups, namely the Order of Nine Angels (O9A) and 764, both of which are classified as terrorist organizations in the United States. O9A has previously stated their belief that Adolf Hitler “was sent by our gods”, that the Holocaust is a myth, and encouraged human sacrifice and rape. 764, an offshoot of O9A, and of which NLM is a subgroup of, originated on the sextortion Discord server CVLT, and has directly encouraged and contributed to grooming, producing CSAM, rape, animal abuse, torture, self-harm, suicide, and homicide. What do all three of these recent shooters have in common? Well, most importantly, all three had their real motives ignored in favor of sensationalizing their identities, both for political gain and spectacle. All three were involved with the “True Crime Community” (TCC), which has faced many criticisms, ranging from podcasters prioritizing entertainment over accuracy, to “Columbiners” who treat real murders as if they are fictional characters to make art, edits, or fanfiction of. These examples aren’t isolated incidents. Recent mass murders are increasingly connected to decentralized online networks where a dangerous cocktail of misanthropy, accelerationist rhetoric, and aestheticized violence thrives. These acts, while usually stemming from some form of alt-right ideology and neo-Nazism, are committed without coherent political goals, and are instead driven by a profound hatred of humanity and desire for notoriety within digital subcultures. Despite this consistent pattern, media coverage has frequently obscured these connections, instead emphasizing shooters' minority identities in headlines and as motivators for the attack. This kind of coverage not only encourages hatred, violence, and stereotypes towards minorities, but also buries crucial warning signs from and awareness towards these online communities. The problem isn’t solely of accurate labeling, but of accurate understanding. The media’s tendency to focus on minority identities while overlooking nihilistic neo-Nazi connections represents a consequential misunderstanding of how violence evolves in digital spaces. This is not to suggest that identity is irrelevant to the violence committed, but rather that it must be contextualized within broader radicalization ecosystems. The same communities that radicalize cisgender white men into neo-Nazi accelerationist ideologies are increasingly recruiting women, people of color, and other marginalized people into misanthropic violence. bullets randomly, and then shot himself. Aside from it being a horrific tragedy, the case drew a lot of eyes for the fact that Solomon was, as he described himself, a Black Nazi sympathizer. In his manifesto, he repetitively uses the hard n-word to refer to himself, as well as Black people as a whole.This needs responses that address the mechanisms of radicalization itself rather than someone’s identity. It isn’t hopeless. Targeted interventions based on an actual understanding of radicalization can prevent violence. But to do this, we must start with factual media coverage. We must stop sensationalizing these killers. We must have social media platforms confront their role in enabling these communities. We must reject click-farming identity-centered headlines. We must promote accurate and evidence-based journalism.
