Opinion: Clown sightings are just another big-nosed lie

With Halloween just around the corner, people have been preparing themselves for the holiday of fear. In this time period, it is common for people to dress up in costumes as a way to celebrate. Despite the lightheartedness of playing dress up, clowns are spooking the nation and the number of clowns spooking people has spiked within the past month.

In one case, during late August in Greenville County, children reported spotting multiple clowns who attempted to lure them into the woods with large amounts of money. Not only that, but citizens in the area had several encounters with the clowns. One boy saw the clowns in the woods and heard them making strange noises at night, while his older brother stated that he heard chains and banging at their door.

Since then, clown sightings have spread to more than a dozen states in September. In Pennsylvania, there were reports of two people in clown outfits who drove around in a pickup truck, attempting to scare children and teenagers. The rise in clown sightings have put some schools on edge due to online threats.

On the other hand, the clown sightings are nothing more than a hoax. In the past two weeks, 12 people across Alabama, Georgia, and Virginia made false claims about seeing clowns, ultimately leading to their arrest. In addition, two teens were charged for chasing kids while wearing clown masks. The two boys ran a Facebook page under the names of “Flomo Clown,” “Shoota Cllown,” and “Kaleb Clown” and sent threats to high school students within their counties.

Although the clown sightings are merely a joke to people, police officers are worried about potential dangers.

“Some people are frightened and have made remarks [about] hunting down these clowns. It’s not a game, it’s serious,” Flomaton Police Chief Bryan Davis said.

With the rise in clown sightings and the spread of photos on social media, people throughout the nation have started to panic. In the end, these disturbances may lead to someone’s death in the future as if a person owns a gun and feels the need to protect themselves, it can easily lead to someone being shot.

Despite the fact that the entire clown uprising is most likely a prank, scaring children or harassing others will be treated as acts much more than simple jokes. The entire hoax may be a promotion for the remake of “It,” but people have taken the prank to the point where people have begun to feel threatened by clowns which can ultimately create an unsafe environment in the future.