Nearly every school year there is another mass shooting or tragic violent act that is being reported by news stations throughout the United States. Every time this occurs our community members, educational leaders, teachers and politicians vow to stop these heinous acts of violence. Recently, there have been programs developed at the state level…

Metaphors can both inspire and mislead the public. Current metaphors for youth violence are inconsistent with scientific evidence about how chronic violence develops and evoke inaccurate or harmful reactions. Popular, problematic metaphors include "superpredator", "quarantining the contagious", "corrective surgery", "man as computer", "vaccine",…