A crowd full of people. All of the cameras are facing you, and the person’s face who’s standing before you, is about to be met with your fist. Suddenly you blink, and you’re sitting in the dean’s office with a big question lingering in your head, “Was the fight worth it?”
In the heat of the moment, when fists are flying and the adrenaline is pumping, many students feel a rush of power and excitement, as if they’ve taken control. For a brief moment, it might feel like a win, but the temporary satisfaction quickly drains and is replaced with quiet regret.
For those involved, fighting seems like the best way to blow off steam after a verbal argument, an “evil stare,” or even gossip that has made their way around the school.
One’s pride plays a big role into why fights start in the first place. Putting respect on their own name, protecting their friends, or “shutting” someone up are all excuses used to justify the need to fight.
Depending on how severe the fight is, students may receive a suspension and/or some school privileges taken away. However, what they don’t realize is how the consequences of school fights last a lot longer than they think they do.
The aftermath of these fights are a lot more than just injuries and bruises. Friendships can be ruined, trust and respect may be lost, and your academic future gets tinted with an image of you that you might not want to be associated with later on in life.
The videos of these fights will be around for years and years to come, always following you around, popping up where you least expect it. If you lost a fight in school you may be spending the rest of your high school years being made fun of because of it. Or worse you win the fight and then are looked at as problematic and ready to fight.
On the other hand, these physical altercations do not only affect those involved, but also those around them.
Students and parents might start questioning safety in the school. Leading to a change in the reputation of the school.
Although oftentimes unexpected fights take time to happen. Everyone knows someone who has ops. Our job as friends is to help deflate situations, not make them worse. The next time you have an issue, stop and think a minute. Maybe throwing a punch is just not worth it.
