On the morning of April 20, 1999 Cassie Bernall, a 17-year-old junior at Columbine High School in Littleton, Colorado, was a typical teenager having a typical day. What nobody knew was that by the end of the day, two of her classmates would storm the school, guns blazing, and kill as many people as they could. Confronted by her killers, Cassie had been asked, "Do you believe in God?" and she had answered "Yes." With that single word, a brave young woman who stood firm in the face of death was catapulted into the consciousness of the entire nation.
In concentrating on Cassie's exchange with the gunmen who killed her, people have been quick to call her a martyr. In a way, this is not surprising. It is only natural to to try to forge meaning from the wreckage of a senseless tragedy. But, by focusing on that one final, decisive moment, the complexities of the far more remarkable story behind it have been left untold. Until now.
In She Said Yes, Cassie's mother has broken her silence to reveal the dramatic journey of a daughter who was, at one point, traveling down a troubled path very similar to that of her killers. It's a story of growing up in the 90s, of peer pressure, adolescent turmoil, and the tough choices parents make. It's also a story of maternal loss - of nightmares and fears, of dreams and hopes dashed by the cruel realities of death at an early age. But in the end, it's a story of redemption more enduring than the massacre that cut it short.
In concentrating on Cassie's exchange with the gunmen who killed her, people have been quick to call her a martyr. In a way, this is not surprising. It is only natural to to try to forge meaning from the wreckage of a senseless tragedy. But, by focusing on that one final, decisive moment, the complexities of the far more remarkable story behind it have been left untold. Until now.
In She Said Yes, Cassie's mother has broken her silence to reveal the dramatic journey of a daughter who was, at one point, traveling down a troubled path very similar to that of her killers. It's a story of growing up in the 90s, of peer pressure, adolescent turmoil, and the tough choices parents make. It's also a story of maternal loss - of nightmares and fears, of dreams and hopes dashed by the cruel realities of death at an early age. But in the end, it's a story of redemption more enduring than the massacre that cut it short.
