Class Dismissed (A Hate Primer)

Album: Exhibit B: The Human Condition (2010)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • This song tells the story of the Virginia Tech massacre on April 16, 2007, where 32 people were killed. The slaughter was the deadliest shooting incident by a single gunman in US history and this song recounts the tragedy through the eyes of the perpetrator Seung-Hui Cho. Exodus stopped playing the tune live after the Sandy Hook shooting.
  • Other songs inspired by the Virginia Tech massacre include:

    "Triple Mass" by Flipper
    "Without You" by The Feeling
    "Singing Man" by The Roots
  • On August 24, 2014 James Evans, a 31-year-old Exodus fan posted lyrics to the song on Facebook

    Student bodies lying dead in the halls
    A blood splattered treatise of hate
    Class dismissed is my hypothesis, gun fire ends in debate


    Multiple agencies received calls concerned about the post, resulting in Evans' arrest as, "he threatened to kill students and or staff at school." Evans was placed in the Muhlenberg County Detention Center before being released eight days later.

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Supertramp founder Roger Hodgson

Supertramp founder Roger HodgsonSongwriter Interviews

Roger tells the stories behind some of his biggest hits, including "Give a Little Bit," "Take the Long Way Home" and "The Logical Song."

Wolfgang Van Halen

Wolfgang Van HalenSongwriter Interviews

Wolfgang Van Halen breaks down the songs on his debut album, Mammoth WVH, and names the definitive Van Halen songs from the Sammy and Dave eras.

Oliver Leiber

Oliver LeiberSongwriter Interviews

Oliver Leiber talks about writing and producing hits for Paula Abdul, and explains his complicated relationship with his father, the songwriter Jerry Leiber.

Weird Al Yankovic

Weird Al YankovicFact or Fiction

Did Al play on a Beach Boys record? Did he have beef with George Lucas and Coolio? See if you can spot weird but true stories.

Loudon Wainwright III

Loudon Wainwright IIISongwriter Interviews

"Dead Skunk" became a stinker for Loudon when he felt pressure to make another hit - his latest songs deal with mortality, his son Rufus, and picking up poop.

Taylor Dayne

Taylor DayneSongwriter Interviews

Taylor talks about "The Machine" - the hits, the videos and Clive Davis.