Donald Gaskins: A Serial Killer

The drive to murder is not experienced by everyone. As a result, the world wants to know why serial killers do what they do. Some people blame it on genetics, or nature, as if there is a malicious gene or DNA sequence that programs the brain the be bloodthirsty. This idea is farfetched, the real answer can be found studying the lives of serial killers. Some killers are abused, molested, or deserted growing up. Others find their reasons later, in the loss of a loved one or a dire misfortune. Donald “Pee Wee” Gaskins became a murderer as a result of his childhood environment.
Donald Gaskins grew up in South Carolina with his mother and many stepfathers. His murderous future traced back all the way to his earliest childhood days. Technically
In almost all of his murders, Gaskins also sexually assaulted his victims. In reform school, the other inmates immediately noticed that Gaskins was frail and took advantage of him. He became a victim of weekly gang-rapes while trying to escape. Being raped has serious physical and psychological effects on humans, this relentless punishment that he endured as a child caused him to have a mental breakdown. The environment that he survived in caused Gaskins to strive to be dominant despite his small stature. While being interviewed on Death Row, he said “I have walked the same path as God, by taking lives and making others afraid, I became God’s equal. Through killing others, I became my own master. Through my own power I come to my own redemption.” (Gaskins) This exemplifies how Gaskins wanted to be superior, he wanted to overshadow those who saw him as inferior, and he wanted to be in control of himself. Gaskins took pleasure in being the dominant figure. He chose victims that were weaker than him, like young women and children. That did not stop him from taking revenge on the gender that ruined his childhood, during his famous hitchhiker murders that took place from 1969 to 1976 Gaskins raped and killed anyone who hitched a ride with him. It is clear that Gaskins had serious psychological problems, but they were not something he was born with, instead he inherited hatred from the treated he received from society.
Serial killers have no regard for human life. They kill for different reasons, for instance, pleasure, relief, or it becomes an addiction. Donald “Pee Wee” Gaskins boasted that he raped and killed over a hundred people throughout his life. He is also the only inmate to kill a fellow convict on Death Row. Donald Gaskins was not a born killer, instead he was the result of a broken home, abusive stepfathers, ruthless peers, and a loveless