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Students protest anti-gun law on campus |
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Tuesday, 29 April 2008 |
by BRANDON BROWN News Reporter
Students opposing Appalachian State University’s stance on concealed weapons on-campus protested last week by wearing empty gun holsters.
The Students for Concealed Carry on Campus, or SCCC group had over 3,800 participants on more than 600 campuses across the country.
“Ultimately, we would like to see the school’s policy changed,” said John C. Morrison, senior management major and member of SCCC. “We’re looking for notoriety.”
Although
carrying a handgun is legal in North Carolina by acquiring a Concealed
Carry Weapon permit, there are many limitations on where a
permit-holding citizen can carry his or her firearm.
Currently, North Carolina General Statute declares concealed carry unlawful on campuses, with the exception of police officers.
According to handgunlaw.us, individuals are also restricted from
carrying handguns in establishments where admission is charged and
where alcohol is sold and consumed.
Permit holders in North Carolina must be at least 21 years old, and
have a clear record of felonies, Class 3 misdemeanors or domestic abuse
charges. Morrison said the driving force behind the protest is the possibility
of an incident similar to the 2007 shooting at Virginia Polytechnic
Institute and State University, where 32 students were murdered on the
no-carry campus.
“[I’ve come] to the realization that campus police are not able to
protect everyone,” Morrison said. “[It] takes one individual to stop
that from happening.”
Since 2006, all nine public colleges in Utah allow licensed individuals
to carry concealed handguns on campus, according to the SCCC Web site.
The issue was recently presented at the April 22 Appalachian State
Student Government Meeting by senate member junior criminal justice
major, Graham P. Shaw.
Shaw posed the question of concealed carry on campus to Sen. Steve Goss of the 45th District in North Carolina.
“I’m [a strong] believer of the second amendment, but I don’t believe it should be on campus,” said Goss.
Like Goss, several students do not believe concealed carry on campus would alleviate the threat of a school shooting.
Junior marketing major Jennifer S. Glazner said she would feel less
safe if students were allowed to carry concealed firearms on campus.
“It would make things much more dangerous,” Glazner said. “If somebody
did get an attitude with somebody else, [guns] would be more
accessible. Some people just don’t need them.”
According to the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation,
approximately 263,102 handgun permits were applied for from 1995 to
2004, with 1,274 applications denied, and 727 licenses revoked during
the same time period.
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