Should Guns Be Allowed In College Campuses?

Dear Mortimer I am writing this paper to persuade you to rethink your position concerning the preemption of firearms regulation regarding college campuses. All over the world violence occurs when we least expect it. As the human race evolves, so does the technology we use. We have acquired the ability to kill a man without being in his general vicinity. With just the slight movement of my finger I can end someone’s life. One small confrontation could lead to a terrible travesty. In the United States alone, we have seen many shootings in educational buildings from the students themselves. When you put guns in the hands of students, you are asking for death. People may say it adds protection to people wearing guns, but what about the people without them? I strongly believe that if this bill is allowed to continue we be seeing a large number of shooting in buildings of education, which is unacceptable. One small miscommunication between two armed students could start a firefight.

They defend this view by saying that,”…people are safer when they have guns to protect themselves; and that an armed bystander could put a stop to a mass shooting in progress” (Skorton and Altschuler 629). Timothy Wheeler makes another point by stating that gun free zones are easy targets for danger and that school killers have taken advantage of effective security (655). He enforces the idea of allowing guns on college grounds by affirming that at “…the Appalachian School of Law in 2002 [a] homicidal Virginia student was stopped from shooting more of his classmates when another student held him at gunpoint” (Wheeler 656). Skorton and Altschuler claim that “colleges and universities are far safer than most public places in the United States” (629). Although that is true, permitting guns on site would counteract that view in and out of the classroom. If firearms were to be allowed on college grounds would campuses still be considered secure locations, would students be able to speak freely on controversial topics, would they really be able to stop attackers if anything was to ever

Concealed carry and college campuses are two major topics currently in the media, yet these two topics are rarely used in unison, until now. The topic of whether or not concealed carry should be allowed on college campuses is a now mainstream debate with multiple views and numerous differentiating opinions. Many of the general public question if campus police is capable enough to protect a university’s enormous student body? Another commonly discussed issue is if concealed handguns actually do deter crime, and if they are capable of aiding in stopping a mass shooting spree? Or if guns on campus, carried by fellow classmates would make students as a whole feel more cautious or on the opposing hand make students feel more secure with guns carried on campus? If guns are allowed on campus, how will this affect a growing student’s ideology? These questions and many more are highly spoken of in our social media based generation, the answers to these questions help to improve our knowledge on this debate of concealed carry on college campuses, which will lead us to form our own individual opinions on this debate topic based on the facts and evidence presented.

With backpacks in tow and pencils in hand, college students crisscross campus with stress of acing the test, hardly thinking about their safety. This was the case on a clear Tuesday at the University of Texas on September 28th, 2010. Students fled from a mask gunman carrying an AK-47 and shooting randomly around campus. Nineteen-year-old Colton Tooley, wearing a black mask, eventually killed himself in the library. Remarkably, no one else was injured or killed. (MSNBC) This was not the case in 1966 when 16 people where killed with 32 injured by a gunman in the UT clock tower. The debate still wages on to allow concealed guns to be carried on college campus in Texas despite a recent bill that failed to pass. The US Constitutional Second

If college campuses legalize the right to obtain a concealed weapon there could a risk of escalation in violence on college campuses. Allowing college students to carry a concealed weapon on campus makes for many opportunities of potential misuse of the weapon. According to the Journal of American College Health, most college students don't have experience shooting or holding a gun, therefore, they could make a mistake and unintentionally harm somebody or even themselves. Granting college students access to guns will pose increased risks of incidents of self-injury, accidental shootings and even murders. The University of Louisiana system shows that evidence also indicates that the presence of concealed weapons on campus would increase the likelihood of

These images bring two sides of debate to the table. The first believe by allowing more people to carry guns on campus, the likelihood of someone attacking the campus would be very unlikely. This group also stands behind the Second Amendment, stating the right to self defense. The second group advocates that it would stifle the learning curve. A person may be afraid to open a debate in fear of the person pulling a gun if they disagree. They also believe that if an incident should occur, there would be a mass confusion on who

Colleges should not be allowed to take away your personal protection unless they can provide a truly safe environment for students. Sadly, most campuses can’t guarantee that assaults won’t occur, so people must be allowed to arm themselves for protection. While some schools have security or law enforcement, rarely can they reach the scene of an assault fast enough to prevent it. If the victim or a bystander has a self-defense weapon, there is a much greater possibility of stopping the attack. Attackers also avoid areas that allow firearms, and knowingly target places that don’t allow them. On October 9th, the Crime Prevention Research Center released a revised report showing that 92% of mass public shootings between January 2009 and July 2014 took place in gun-free zones. If college campuses nationwide reflected on the findings of this report, it would become apparent that allowing concealed weapons on campuses would significantly lower the odds of attacks occurring. Campuses that allow conceal carry are utilizing one of the biggest measures to deter assaults. According to John R. Lott Jr., PhD, "when states passed concealed carry laws during the years we studied (1997-2005), the number of multiple-victim campus shootings declined by 84%. Deaths from these shootings plummeted on average by 90%, injuries by 82%.

What balance is there between the second amendment rights and public safety? Should there be gun restrictions of where they could be carried? Are college students safer if they are allowed to carry guns on campus? This issue of whether guns should be allowed on college campuses has been an ongoing national debated. In the essay “Do We Really Need More Guns on Campus” from the book Patterns, David Skorton and Glenn Altschuler discuss how the campus community is considerably safer if there's a ban on guns on campus.

Since the beginning of public education, there have been heinous crimes on the campuses of the schools. These crimes have taken place everywhere, from Columbine High School all the way to a classroom on the Virginia Tech campus. To be more specific the most devastating crime that can take place on a collegiate campus is a mass shooting. So, with more and more states beginning to allow those who possess a conceal carry permit, to carry at more places throughout the state. The question is asked, should college campuses allow students to carry a concealed handgun, while attending class. Some will say that there are already solutions in place; but, these solutions are not effective. The answer is yes, allowing students to carry is the only way to deter mass shootings on a college campus. Now some may ask, “What exactly is concealed carry?” Furthermore, more restaurants and places of work are beginning to allow employees and customers to enter with their concealed weapon. With the crime rate on the rise at most college campuses, campuses should consider allowing students to carry concealed weapons to deter crime.

However, instead of worrying about the presence of guns in the classroom and dorms, college campuses could actually restrict the allowance of having a gun in the classroom and the dorms. If they do this, the campuses would still retain control of what's to happen in their classrooms and residence halls and the students would have a harder time accessing the weapon. Resulting in the prevention of a

Critics often argue that teachers need to be armed on campus, because students and teachers have the right to self protection. Admittedly, self protection is something we need to know how to handle. However, having everybody armed with a loaded gun on school campuses is absolutely unnecessary, because some people have very short tempers, and if they happen to get mad, they will always have a loaded gun right on them, which could turn into something worse. For example, Andy Pelosi, director of the campaign “Students For Concealed Carry”, states, “Suicide is the second leading cause of death for college aged young adults. On average, about 1,000 college students commit suicide each year while another 24,000 attempt suicide. Suicide attempts with firearms are fatal more than 90% of the time. It goes without saying that making firearms more available to college students will make it more likely that more of these 24,000 unsuccessful attempts each year will become fatal.” (Keep Guns Off Campus n.p) Pelosi’s point is that if guns are allowed on every school campus, the amount of stress these college students have, could result in suicide. Having these guns with them on campus will make suicide much easier, because they will always have a weapon by their side. Andy also notes, “Numerous studies have shown that whenever guns are introduced into an environment, the result is more gun deaths and injuries. It stands to reason that introducing guns into college campuses would only increase the risk of gun violence to students, faculty, and staff.” (Keep Guns Off Campus n.p.) In other words, Pelosi strongly believes guns should not be allowed on campus. Member of the site debate.org states his opinion saying, “Guns should not be in a learning environment/atmosphere. Guns are a sign of intimidation. The potential of a violent incident

Not only can concealed carry help prevent and stop mass shootings on campuses before the police arrive; it can also help lower the crime rate. Renneker demonstrates that not allowing concealed carry on campus leads to a higher crime rate on campus by citing the following, much in line with Fortunato’s findings on concealed carry across the nation. In 2013 Boise State

Knowing that someone sitting next to you on campus may have a gun is a terrifying thought for many people. Not only would they feel uncomfortable but they may not be able to study or do homework. “Allowing guns on campus would inject deadly weapons into an atmosphere already swirling with academic pressure, romantic rivalries, youthful impetuousness, alcohol and drugs” one of the reasons why having a gun on campus may be terrifying is because all of the pressure, us

There have been 45 shootings at schools so far this year; August 8 there was two shoot-ings. As more shootings happen, people start to realize that something should be done about gun control and the way guns are handled in a public, especially a school, or even be allowed outside of the holders’ private property. Many students don’t like the idea of open-carry or concealed carry, most students would feel uneasy and anxious at the thought of a professor or a student car-rying a weapon and being able to open fire at any moment. It is argued that if students and pro-fessors were allowed to carry a weapon on campus, in the event of a shooting, the shooter would quickly be neutralized, saving many lives. This would however cause conflict with students who are against guns, putting their lives in danger if

and looks to articulate Pelosi’s position to oppose the proponents of firearms (428). Furthermore, Wood’s article provides information offered by Gun Free Schools that states reasons for not owning guns in school. The first counterargument that Wood responds to is that concealed handguns would detract from a healthy learning environment (428). The Colorado legislature passed a law allowing lawful residents, who possess a concealed and carry permit, the ability to possess a firearm on Colorado State campuses. To date this has not deterred nor diminished anyone’s ability to learn. While this is an effort to poison the well, it is an ineffective argument and fallacious in nature. Next, Woods claims that Gun Free Schools make the statement that more guns on campus would create additional risk for students (428). While this may be true, to a minor extent, the benefit of protecting children certainly outweighs the additional risk. Additionally, with proper training and the advent of new technologies that prevent an unauthorized individual from firing the weapon, this because a moot point. The third argument Wood addresses is that shooters will not be deterred by concealed carry permit holders (428). The point is not to deter an attacker with a firearm, the point is to minimize the amount of damage an individual can perpetrate against an unarmed individual. History has already been shown that these individuals wishing to harm children do not think from a rational position.