(ConservativeHub.com) – On December 17, when many schools were preparing for the last day of school before winter break, they received an alert about a worrying new TikTok challenge. The school shooting challenge may not have had many details associated with it, but some schools were worried enough to close their doors.
Law enforcement began working overtime to uncover the source of this potentially deadly social media dare, leading to numerous arrests of teenage suspects.
School Shooting Challenge Details
Upon examining the details of the so-called “National Shoot Up Your School Day,” officials linked it to the November 30 incident at Oxford High School in Michigan. Four students died in the attack allegedly perpetrated by 15-year-old Ethan Crumbley.
The challenge urged students to take firearms to school and begin shooting. Beyond that, the threat was vague. It didn’t give details about specific locations or times beyond the date of December 17.
According to @enigmasoul_updated on TikTok, the original challenge was to skip school; that somehow turned into calling in a threat to get out of school. That, in turn, became a challenge to commit violence.
The Response
Multiple law enforcement agencies cautioned local schools about the potential for an incident to occur. Some superintendents sent out warning letters to parents, and others closed their schools for the day. In some districts, local agencies increased police presence.
TikTok issued a statement saying it reviewed posts but couldn’t verify the source of the challenge. The platform said it completed an exhaustive search of content and did not uncover any promotion of violence in schools. It did find videos of people discussing the challenge and issuing warnings about it.
The platform stated that the FBI, US Department of Homeland Security and local officials could not substantiate the threat. Following its misinformation policy, the platform then began removing all videos and content related to National Shoot Up Your School Day.
The Results
While they never found a credible threat, some law enforcement agencies made arrests while investigating the challenge.
Lee County Sheriff’s Office detained three teens over bomb threats. They allegedly posted threats against their schools on social media.
Authorities also reportedly arrested teens in Connecticut, Florida, Wyoming, Texas, South Carolina, Rhode Island, California, and Maryland. In total, agencies took over a dozen school students into custody. Some were as young as 13.
Whether it was all a hoax or not, the fact schools, parents and students have to worry about someone firing a gun at them in a learning environment is a terrible thing. It is a shame this is happening at a time that should be full of cheer and joy.
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