What is protection? Should a person have to depend on another for their well-being, or should they have the ability to defend their own person? Concealed carry is a controversial issue, more so when it is allowed on college campuses. There are two sides to every stone and some people may only see the side facing up. When it comes to weapons, there is always a big ordeal about what will happen when a law is or is not put into play. If concealed carry is allowed on campuses terrorist may abuse this privilege as a way to perform mass shootings? What if others were also carrying a weapon and stopped the shooter? Would we see an increase in violence or suicides? These are a few of the many pros and cons of concealed carry on college campuses. Although …show more content…
If a student confronts another student, it could lead to one or both of them pulling a weapon. If this happens and other students begin to take sides with or without drawn weapons, will the situation end badly? Anger can become uncontrollable and lead to violence, going even further with drawn pistols. Suppose a professor gives a student a grade worse than what they were expecting. Sean Ahrens writes, “A teacher is in a heated discussion with a student and sees a gun — what now?” (Facilities Net). The outcome of this situation could lead to one in the hospital and the other in police …show more content…
These people claim that tension between teacher and students, a stalker and the stalked, or just between students will ultimately end in a weapon being drawn and a life being taken. Mike Guzman, president of Students for Concealed Carry, views carrying a handgun “huge responsibility,” but one that should be allowed on campus for people who have permits. Guzman states, “There have been bans on universities and schools because as a society we feel that guns shouldn’t be allowed,” while supporters of concealed carry on campus don’t understand why society thinks a person who is deemed rational enough to be allowed to carry a concealed gun in a public areas, will suddenly be “illogical and irrational” upon entering a school (Facilities Net). Claims against concealed carry are simply invalid because there is no difference between two or more people meeting outside of a school, while they are carrying a concealed weapon, and they enter an
In the past couple of years, gun control has been a debatable topic throughout the United States, especially with the rising occurrences of mass shootings. Citizens all around are asking if firearms are necessarily a helpful tool that we need, or are they dangerous killing machines that people and news say. Today, a majority of the population respects the right to own and carry a firearm on a daily basis. Some states are changing the law from concealed carry to open carry. This means that instead of a licensed citizen hiding their firearm underneath their clothing. They would now be showing the firearm visible to everyone around them while out in public. Having the law to open-carry in every state would be beneficial not only to the owner but
In “Stop Worrying About Guns in the Classroom. They’re Already here.” the author, Erik Gilbert, argues in favor of the law allowing the concealed carry of firearms in college campuses. Gilbert claims that it’s futile to be “worried by the prospect of having guns in [the] classroom” because he believes that even before the bill was passed, some students and faculty were already carrying firearms to campus (Gilbert). Furthermore, he insinuates that despite the presence of firearms, there were no incidents of student or faculty causing harm. To support his argument, the author provides incidents which have occurred over the last decade at his campus, such as accidental discharge of guns in dorms, firearms in student’s vehicles, and one faculty member who was discovered to be in possession of a gun in an on-campus facility. Considering these incidents and previous knowledge of “prevailing regional attitudes towards guns”, the author assumes that significant numbers of students, and possibly faculty, bring guns on campus regularly (Gilbert). As for those who are afraid due to the new law, he declares to them that firearm permit-holders are not dangerous by comparing the rate of their crimes to that of police officers. He also reasons that permit holders need to be at least 21 to qualify—claiming that the more mature students qualify—and have background checks performed.
People who disagree with me think that there should be concealed gun carry on college campuses because it will make the students safer in a risky situation by making the students able to shoot down and stop the shooter. Students for Concealed Carry, an organization for concealed gun carry on campus, say, “The crux of the SGFS essay is the undeniable fact that college campuses typically have lower crime rates than the cities in which they reside” (642). In “Why Our Campuses Are Safer Without Concealed Handguns”, an article against concealed handgun carry, states that, “Our colleges and universities are safe sanctuaries for learning.” (633).
While the opposing team fears that this law may bring more deaths, and will not solve any issues but create new ones, it will also make campuses an unsafe place for students and faculty. The majority of the students who attend universities or in general do not have a license to carry a weapon, but that still does not stop how unsafe people feel in classrooms, or in their dorms. In my opinion, I am someone who opposes the campus carry law. I believe that weapons bring nothing but danger and fear, and many other students and professors feel the same way.
Why would a student feel the need to carry a concealed weapon on campus? After all they’re headed to a “school” not a war zone. Idaho, Utah, Colorado, Kansas, Mississippi, Oregon, Texas, and Wisconsin are the only states that allow concealed weapons on campus. Arizona and other states let schools decide the policy on weapons. Many states prohibited concealed weapons on campus which is the right choice. Most colleges who allow their students to carry concealed weapons increase the chances of violence on campus. College students must be unable to carry concealed weapons on
Supporting Point Why should college campuses be any different? They contain the country’s future presidents, senators and judges. They are also one of the most vulnerable places because most colleges don’t allow firearms on campus. The most important factor is that many students don’t pay attention to their surroundings so they are put in dangerous situations and they should be able to defend themselves to a certain extent.
“Carrying a concealed handgun in public is permitted in all 50 states as of 2013. Some states have “unrestricted carry” and do not require permits” (ProCon.org 1). Law abiding citizens can apply for a “concealed carry permit” if they have no record of mental illness and no criminal record. The permit allows them to carry handguns not only at home, but almost everywhere they go. More women are buying handguns than ever before and going through the training to get a license to carry(The Economist 1). Before, you had to prove you had a need to get such a permit. In 1989 the National Rifle Association (NRA) started a nationwide campaign to get laws passed that made it legal for law abiding citizens to carry a concealed handgun. Their argument was that criminals who knew that their victims were armed would be less likely to attack (New York Times 1).
My recently divorced History professor seemed to be in an extremely foul mood one dreary Monday morning. Every move and comment the class made seemed to irritate him more and more. Everyone in the room stopped moving and talking in concern for him, everyone except Josh, who is our class clown. He made the decision to make a comment to our teacher that any other day would have broken the ice and class would have resumed. For some reason, on this particular day it was the straw that broke the camel’s back. My professor looked up from the floor and in a matter of seconds had removed a gun provided to him by the school for protection, from under his jacket, and then shot Josh before anyone could do anything to stop him. Although, this is a story of fiction and never really happened, it could become a headline on the six o’clock news if David McGrath gets his way. He is the author of an article that supports teachers being given loaded weapons for protection in the classroom. To me providing teachers with weapons is a drastic move because the epidemic of school shootings is not as big as McGrath makes it out to be and there are many more sensible solutions that have yet to be explored.
Secondly, some people believe guns should not be allowed on campus because they may go off by accident. True, a gun may go off by accident, but according to, Students for Concealed Carry, out of 150 college campuses that allow concealed carry, there have been only three accidental discharges (Common). Two of them were by staff and one by a student. All three of the accidental discharges resulted in non-life-threatening discharges in which no one was injured (Common). All three incidents could have been prevented through proper training and practice, such as wearing a
Of all school shootings only 47 percent of them are on college campuses. The other 53 percent are in elementary through high school grade campuses. These numbers can be drastically cut back by allowing concealed and open carry on college campuses. Students should be allowed to open carry on campus because it increases the protection of both themselves and the public.
Alternatively, the people who believe that concealed weapons should be allowed in college campus state that they are are allowed to because of what the second amendment. The second amendment allows for any resident of the United States to be able to buy and own a concealed weapon of their choice. Students for Concealed Carry state the point that a person should be allowed to own a gun if they wish to be able to feel safe and protect themselves by stating, “Why should a 105-pound woman who is allowed the means to defend herself against a 250-pound would-be rapist outside of campus not be afforded the same right on campus” (647)? Other people also believe that having a gun would be able to deter the shooter. They believe the shooter would be stopped just by the thought of him going to a place filled with guns would trigger feat in their brain and make them rethink that they are about to do. “It’s hard to attain infamy if a concealed handgun license holder ends your shooting spree before it begins” (Students for Concealed Carry 647). The final point most people who are for concealed carry on campus is that they believe they would be able to stop the shooter faster or before he even begins the shoot...
School shootings have altered American history greatly over the past two decades. From 1997 to 2007, there have been more than 40 school shootings, resulting in over 70 deaths and many more injuries. School shoot-outs have been increasing in number dramatically in the past 20 years. There are no boundaries as to how old the child would be, or how many people they may kill or injure. At Mount Morris Township, Michigan, on February 29th, 2000, there was a 6 year old boy who shot and killed another 6 year old girl at the Buell Elementary School with a .32 caliber pistol. And although many shootings have occurred at High Schools or Middle Schools, having more guns on those campuses would not be a good environment for children to grow up in. However, on a college campus, the pupils attending are not children anymore; the age range is from 17 to mid 20’s. Therefore they understand the consequences associated to the use of weapons and have gained more maturity. In April 16th, 2007, at Blacksburg, Virginia, there was a shooting rampage enacted by Sung-Hui Cho (23 years, from Centreville, VA) who fired over 170 rounds, killing 32 victims, before taking his own life at the Virginia Tech campus. Colleges and Universities would be a much safer place, for student and teacher, if guns were permitted on campus for self-defense purposes.
Concealed weapons on college campuses have been a debatable issue for a long time now. “Statistically, colleges and universities are relatively safe environments for students, faculty, and administrators”, but will concealed carry affect this (Kirszner and Mandell, 626)?Supporters argue that being able to carry a concealed weapon lowers the percentage of shooting or accidents and that it is simply constitutional to have the right to bear arms. On the other hand, non-supporters believe that this will affect the way of learning in school, and raise anxiety. While it is true that having a concealed weapon can make the person holding it feel safe, we should not allow it because it may bring more negative rather than positive things into the college campuses.
Due to the recent disruption of violent crimes on campus, many citizens that are pro-gun activist have suggested that both the students and teachers should be allowed to carry concealed weapons on school campuses. Those who are with guns allowed on school campuses claim that their rights have been violated for the reason that many college campuses refuse to allow weapons of any kind on their property. The Constitution of The United States of America already grants citizens the right to carry guns with them. It is not appropriate for guns to be in a vulnerable area such as a college campus or any University. There are already too many guns available to the public or easy to get any kind of gun, and allowing them on
Recently, state legislators and court rulings have made it possible for students on certain college campuses to carry concealed weapons. This is due in part to the shootings that have happened over the years and the increasing threat of unknown enemies. However, the issue has come into question and concern on college campuses. Some argue that guns on campus should be a choice left up to the individual, after all it is their 2nd Amendment right. Others would say that college campuses are a place of learning, a place that does not require firearms at all. Lastly, there are those who say that stricter gun laws would prevent crimes and shootings.