On September 21, 2022, Netflix released a mini-series called Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story with 10 episodes telling the story of the serial killer, rapist, kidnapper, and cannibal Jeffrey Dahmer. The baby boomers and generation X are familiar with this story, but it was newer for most millennials and generation Z. It has become a phenomenon on social media because of the release of the new series. This story is so dark and twisted, it is truly unbelievable.
Over a span of thirteen years, Jeffrey Dahmer committed horrific acts on seventeen vulnerable victims. It was his attempted eighteenth victim who escaped and ultimately was the reason Dahmer was finally caught. These numbers could have been much lower, and several lives could have been saved if officials had paid more attention to minority groups. Dahmer’s targets were young, homosexual, black boys. The most important component to this story is the time period. His killings were from 1978-1991 when racism, homophobia, and discrimination were extremely prevalent all across the United States. When the victims went missing, police departments failed to do anything which allowed the killings to continue. Dahmer’s behaviors proved that if you stick to killing certain segments of our population, you can get away with it for a very long time.
Throughout history, our country has seen plenty of serial killers. From Ted Bundy to Charles Manson to John Wayne Gacy, there have been some notorious murders that shook the nation. But Jeffrey Dahmer was quite unique. He didn’t just kill his victims; he ate them. Dahmer admitted to all of his heinous acts when he was finally caught by the Milwaukee Police Department. He left nothing for detectives to have to search for. He was honest and specified to police exactly what he did to each victim. First he would usually beat then kill them with a weapon. Second he would dissect the body by removing organs and amputating the bones. Lastly, he would eat parts of the body, usually the heart.
The Netflix series stars actor Evan Peters, who portrays Dahmer’s life. The show attempts to depict events throughout his childhood that may have influenced him to commit the acts he did. This story is one that the public has been so infatuated with because of how disturbing and inconceivable it is. For younger viewers, it is difficult to understand how Dahmer got away with all of this for so long. It seems as if something similar happened today, the perpetrator would be instantly caught. An important detail is that Dahmer committed all of these murders in his apartment. His neighbors consistently reported strange noises and putrid smells to police. All of the reports were ignored.
Less than a week after being released, Netflix has the series ranked the #1 TV Show on the streaming service. Across all social media sites, this story is being talked about. Even Katy Perry has a song that references him. The lyrics say, “She eats your heart out like Jeffrey Dahmer (whoa!)”. The series is very dismaying but it highlights a true tragedy as well as institutionalized discrimination that we can all learn from.
https://www.crimemuseum.org/crime-library/serial-killers/jeffrey-dahmer/
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