One of the most common and widespread fears is scientifically dubbed coulrophobia, or the “abnormal” fear of clowns.
But this fear isn’t all too abnormal, as a study performed in 2008 showed that the fear of clowns in children is pretty much universal. After becoming a rampant scare throughout North America; the creepy clowns have reportedly reached Canada, and the fear has definitely gone from children to adults.
Police in the Waterloo area increased patrols as sightings of clowns in Southern Ontario region hit one dozen. Of these calls involved three clowns, with one allegedly holding a large stick and chasing a woman near the University of Waterloo Campus. This is just the tip of what has become a string of creepy clown reports.
The alleged reports of sightings have spanned from Halifax, Edmonton and as close as Toronto without much reason. Numerous arrests have been made relating to the creepy clowns with majority of offenders being found to be teens and adults in their early twenties.
Although Canada is quite new to this creepy clown craze, America has become a hot spot for sightings and arrests. The craze seems to have originated in Greenville, S.C., where clowns allegedly attempted to lure children into the woods with money in late August. Many of the nationwide sightings involved clowns stalking pedestrians, threatening citizens with weapons and scaring children. Many of the teen “clowns” have been arrested for terroristic threats via social media, much like the girl who made a Facebook account dubbed “Kroaky Klown” and posted threats online.
Since, reports of clowns have surfaced nationwide and as a result arrests have been made and schools have been put on lock down. Many mysteries surround the clown craze, but incidents have been narrowed down to two forms; threats on social media directed at schools, or sightings of clowns with some incidences turning violent.
But, with the onslaught of clowns comes the “anti-clown mob,” who have failed to find any clowns. As is the case in many situations where the authorities are involved; the clowns aren’t found. This has also led to arrests of those calling the police to warn them of clowns when there aren’t any. This includes a 14 year-old girl in New Jersey that had cried wolf to being chased by a knife-wielding clown who was charged with “clown hoaxing.”
However, it is unclear as to whether or not this craze is related to the planned 2017 remake of Stephen King’s “It,” over-excited Hallowe’en goers, or copycat pranksters. Could this just be an iconic ad campaign like the Old Spice “Smell Like a Man, Man,” gone wrong for Hallowe’en?
Clown 1: Known as the “Killer Clown,” John Wayne Gacy was a serial killer that many television franchises went to for inspiration on clown characters, including the popular televisions series American Horror Story.
