Rally held for concealed carry
Melissa Chi
Issue date: 4/24/08 Section: News
Students gathered yesterday to fight for the right to defend themselves by carrying concealed weapons on campus.
UT Students for Concealed Carry on Campus held a rally this week on campus, led by campus leader Matt Rubin, a freshman majoring in political science and public administration.
This is the second national collegiate Empty Holster Protest, and it focused on educating students and faculty on the facts of concealed carry laws, Rubin said.
"We're wearing empty holsters to symbolize that students do not have the right to carry [weapons] on campus and [at] most colleges, and we think that it's unfortunate. And it's something we'd like to see change," he said.
The holsters were donated by various groups, organizations and people who support this cause.
Currently, Colorado State University, Blue Ridge Community College in Virginia and all nine public colleges in Utah allow concealed carry on campus.
"It has been proven that conceal carry holders have better accuracy than police officers because they have more practices and are actually more dedicated," Rubin said.
Among the requirements to obtain a Concealed Carry License are that the individual has to be at least 21 years old, have a background check and mandatory training sessions.
"Even though you can be trained to certain circumstances, it doesn't exactly mean you're exactly ready to handle it," said Grace Engel, a freshman majoring in English.
UT Police Chief Jeff Newton stated his strong stance against this cause.
"I believe there should be no guns on campus," he said.
"The Conceal Carry Movement itself started about 25 years ago," said Brian Patrick, an associate professor in communication, who added that Ohio had passed the law in 2004.
There's approximately three to four million people licensed nationally, and concealed carry laws work and seem to be benign, he said.
"The killers are not people who go through training programs, [people] who had passed background checks, who are organized, socially aware, who are good people who passed these programs," Patrick said. "They are a carefully selected lot."
UT Students for Concealed Carry on Campus held a rally this week on campus, led by campus leader Matt Rubin, a freshman majoring in political science and public administration.
This is the second national collegiate Empty Holster Protest, and it focused on educating students and faculty on the facts of concealed carry laws, Rubin said.
"We're wearing empty holsters to symbolize that students do not have the right to carry [weapons] on campus and [at] most colleges, and we think that it's unfortunate. And it's something we'd like to see change," he said.
The holsters were donated by various groups, organizations and people who support this cause.
Currently, Colorado State University, Blue Ridge Community College in Virginia and all nine public colleges in Utah allow concealed carry on campus.
"It has been proven that conceal carry holders have better accuracy than police officers because they have more practices and are actually more dedicated," Rubin said.
Among the requirements to obtain a Concealed Carry License are that the individual has to be at least 21 years old, have a background check and mandatory training sessions.
"Even though you can be trained to certain circumstances, it doesn't exactly mean you're exactly ready to handle it," said Grace Engel, a freshman majoring in English.
UT Police Chief Jeff Newton stated his strong stance against this cause.
"I believe there should be no guns on campus," he said.
"The Conceal Carry Movement itself started about 25 years ago," said Brian Patrick, an associate professor in communication, who added that Ohio had passed the law in 2004.
There's approximately three to four million people licensed nationally, and concealed carry laws work and seem to be benign, he said.
"The killers are not people who go through training programs, [people] who had passed background checks, who are organized, socially aware, who are good people who passed these programs," Patrick said. "They are a carefully selected lot."
Viewing Comments 1 - 2 of 4
Matt
posted 4/25/08 @ 5:12 AM EST
I agree that more guns on campus may not drop crime rates, but it will not hurt them either. A concealed weapon carries with it much more responsibility than a book bag. (Continued…)
Sean Martin
posted 5/07/08 @ 4:51 PM EST
Maybe Chief Newton would be able to guarantee me the he will be on the scene in time to prevent another shooting. Hardly.
At NIU, police were on the scene less than 90 seconds after shooting began and it was still over with 17 wounded and 5 dead. (Continued…)
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