My Son was a Columbine Shooter. This is my Story by Sue Klebold (Transcript)

Sue Klebold

Here is the full transcript of Sue Klebold’s Talk on My Son was a Columbine Shooter. This is my Story at TED conference.

Sue Klebold – School counselor

The last time I heard my son’s voice was when he walked out the front door on his way to school. He called out one word in the darkness: “Bye”.

It was April 20, 1999. Later that morning, at Columbine High School, my son Dylan and his friend Eric killed 12 students and a teacher and wounded more than 20 others before taking their own lives. Thirteen innocent people were killed, leaving their loved ones in a state of grief and trauma. Others sustained injuries, some resulting in disfigurement and permanent disability. But the enormity of the tragedy can’t be measured only by the number of deaths and injuries that took place.

There’s no way to quantify the psychological damage of those who were in the school, or who took part in rescue or cleanup efforts. There’s no way to assess the magnitude of a tragedy like Columbine, especially when it can be a blueprint for other shooters who go on to commit atrocities of their own.

Columbine was a tidal wave, and when the crash ended, it would take years for the community and for society to comprehend its impact. It has taken me years to try to accept my son’s legacy. The cruel behavior that defined the end of his life showed me that he was a completely different person from the one I knew.