It all began on August 29, in Greenville County, SC: clown sightings.

An epidemic of clowns is starting to appear out of woods or other areas. What we know so far is that there are instances where these clowns have tried to lure in children, or they would creep out of the woods.

Some who have spotted them and attempted to go after them would suddenly find themselves chasing air because the clown would just disappear.

Witnesses state that clowns have started to appear around Western Massachusetts. Students have claimed to see clowns on campuses or near it.

Some may be just hoaxes, or pranks, but what is odder is that these appearances of clowns are showing up in different locations in different states.

We have a cultural image of clowns being viewed as jolly and silly, as well as appearing in birthday parties or in groups in a circus.

AIC student Nancy Germain hears these rumors that are going about in classrooms from friends as well as on Facebook, and feels like the rumors are unfounded.

“I feel like it’s stupid. I feel like some of them that are doing it, are doing it as a prank—which is not a good prank,” Germain points out.” “I feel like it’s a gateway for those who are pedophiles and creeps, but I don’t know why they would start off trying to attract kids.”

Asked if she feels threatened, Germain replies, “I don’t feel threatened because I’ve never seen a clown. I mean, it’s not here so I don’t feel threatened, but if I see a clown—I mean, some people say they’d attack them—but I’ll probably just walk the other way.”

“Maybe have 911 on speed-dial,” she added, which is the most probable outcome if anyone were to encounter a clown.

For input of a sociologist’s point of view of this issue, Melissa MacDonald, a sociology professor at AIC, was asked for her opinion on the clown craze.

“As a sociologist, everything is fascinating because you can kind of see this behavior or action of dressing up as a clown violates our certain norms that we have about our behavior, our actions—what we expect from one another,” MacDonald explains.

An act of deviance is a state of departing from usual accepted standards. Deviance can reaffirm the norms, because society can come together and say ‘no, this is not what we do, so you shouldn’t do that either.’ These behaviors and expectations are anticipated by the norms in society.

“You know, it’s not Halloween or someone’s birthday, so we don’t as a society don’t expect people to kind of engage in a costume play for a day to day basis,” MacDonald says. “Also, it’s both potentially a crime but a not a crime. So it’s an informal one that’s being broken in terms of dressing up and walking around in public; there is then the formal norms that are getting broken because it is harassment, abuse, or assault.”

“As a sociologist, it is very curious—is it a fad or a trend? How does it get coordinated? Because it is not in one location that it’s occurring….It’s a phenomenon at this point.”

Professor MacDonald definitely points out that it could be a threat if allowed the opportunity, “There is definitely a threat to children, so we don’t necessarily know the intentions of harassing of people. So definitely an invested interest in the community could be of good help to ensure safety,” MacDonald added. “But, if they were just dressing up as clowns and walking around doing their day to day business, is that an issue that the community or police need to address?”

“No. So I think the real threat is the potentiality for violence,” she concluded.

What are their goals? What is the purpose for them to dress up as clowns? Is it joy, or is it the thrill of being able to illicit fear into other people? We do know it has something to do with a social psychological element.

This may also have to do with Halloween coming up. Though, the 1990 horror film, IT – which is being remade and released in 2017 – could also influence their actions and behavior.

What we do know is that it’s something that will not last for a long time. Will it be something to remember of in the future? Possibly. ‘Hey, remember that time, years ago there was this epidemic of clowns appearing out of nowhere. Yeah…crazy times.’

As an AIC student, it shouldn’t be something to be overly worried about. Just in case – because you know how life is – if you have the opportunity, have someone with you at all times, and keep safe. There are many unexpected surprises in the world that you just won’t expect.