Thirteen Reasons Why Prompts School To Send Home Warning

The new 13 Reasons Why Netflix series was released on March 31st, 2017, and it is become increasingly popular among high school students, according to Adam Boldt, Arrowhead’s Director of Student Services.

According to usatoday, “Netflix series makes ‘13 Reasons Why’ a No. 1 USA TODAY best seller.” Originally, Asher’s novel was released in 2007 but it didn’t make USA TODAY’s top list until April.

The story of 13 Reasons Why includes sensitive topics such as rape and suicide. There are also controversies as to whether is depicts mental health well.

The story and series have the same story line. Clay Jensen and his classmates went to school with a girl named Hannah Baker. She was Clay’s classmate and crush. But her classmates had no idea what she was going through and later, Hannah committed suicide.

Two weeks after Hannah’s suicide, Clay came home and found a box lying on his porch with his name on it and no return address. Inside, he found cassette tapes. He then finds his dad’s cassette player and inserts the first tape.

“Hey, it’s Hannah. Hannah Baker. Don’t adjust your…whatever device you’re hearing this on. It’s me, live and in stereo. No return engagements, no encore, and this time, absolutely no requests. Get a snack. Settle in. Because I’m about to tell you the story of my life. More specifically, why my life ended. And if you’re listening to this tape…you’re one of the reasons why. I’m not saying which tape brings you into the story. But fear not, if you received this lovely little box, your name will pop up. I promise.”

Hannah left a suicide note blaming 13 people for her suicide. The only people that know of the tapes are the people who are on the list.

“Anyway, the rules here are pretty simple. There are only two. Rule number one: You listen. Number two: You pass it on. Hopefully, neither one will be easy. It’s not supposed to be easy or I would have emailed you an MP3. When you’re done listening to all 13 sides, because there are thirteen sides to every story…rewind the tapes, put them back in the box, and pass them on to the next person,” says Hannah

Hannah not only left tapes, but a map marked with stars, indicating where bad memories happened.

“I didn’t like the show because it showed how depressed I could get and I don’t like talking about these things. They shouldn’t have aired the show and even though the actors were good it made me depressed,” said Brandi Clements, a sophomore at Arrowhead.

“I’ll be mentioning several spots around our beloved city. I can’t force you to visit them, but if you’d like a little more insight, head for the stars. Or, you know, just throw the map away and I’ll never know…or will I? You see, in case you’re tempted to break the rules, understand I did make a copy of these tapes. And I left them with a trusted individual who, if this package doesn’t make it through all of you will release those copies in a very public manner. This was not a spur of the moment decision. Do not take me for granted. Not again. Do what I say. Not more, not less. You’re being watched,” said Hannah in 13 Reasons Why.

“It was good. I thought it was informative and it was eye opening. What you say to someone can go a long way. It was a sensitive topic but it was necessary to talk about,” said Reagan Mann, a sophomore at Arrowhead.

“Get help from a school-employed or community-based mental health professional if you are concerned for your child’s safety or the safety of one of their peers,” said Boldt.

“I talk a lot about how we need to be open, how we need to make sure that the people around us know we care. To the students, I’m addressing that to your friends: Make sure your friends know they can come to you. But at the same time, it’s telling them the teachers are there because they care. One of the things I make sure to tell the teens at every school I visit, whether it’s for this anti-bullying tour or a traditional author visit, is “The only reason I’m at your school is because the faculty here cares. They know this is uncomfortable to talk about, but they’re not afraid of that. The fact that they invited me here alone tells you that they care, and that they do realize this stuff is important and serious. If they’re bringing somebody in to talk about this issue, it’s hard. It’s a book that’s been banned a lot,” said Jay Asher, author of 13 Reasons Why, on ew in an interview.

“The National Association of School Psychologists has released guidance for caregivers on this issue…While having this conversation with your child may be difficult and/or uncomfortable, it lets them know that you are open to truly listening to what they are experiencing and that you want to help in times of great stress,” said Boldt.