Virginia Tech Shooting Persuasive Speech

“I don’t like Mondays. This livens it up.” The sound of gunfire sent school children scrambling, rifle shots felling their intended marks. Children, who moments before had been eagerly awaiting the start of clas, became victims of Brenda Spencer’s intention of murder. Her callous words, uttered when questioned by police, mark the nation’s first high-profile school shooting, and what is thought of as of as the beginning of these modern-day tragedies. Two died and nine others were wounded that day at Grover Cleveland Elementary school in San Diego, CA. It would be another twenty years before Columbine High School in Littleton, Colorado was ravaged by two students who ushering in the fear of school shootings like none before. According the storyteller,

Some States have enacted their own laws. Florida has allowed its citizens to carry a concealed weapon. Since this law was enacted the murder rate has dropped by 29%. Over the same period of time the nationwide murder rate increased by 11%. This clearly shows that guns in the hands of law-abiding citizens can prevent crime.

By concealing the weapon, citizens can go about their day normally without being distracted by a handgun on someone’s person. Many Americans are beginning to grasp the concept that gun control laws are rapidly becoming useless. John C. Moorhouse and Brent Wanner, authors of “Gun Control Law Do Not Reduce Violent Crimes” State that the reason gun control is ineffective, is because it does next to nothing to stop criminals from getting their hands on firearms (Gun Control Laws Do Not Reduce). To reduce gun crime, more needs to be done to stop criminals, instead of focusing efforts on law abiding citizens, they are not the ones to worry about.

About 4,400 colleges and universities in the United States forbid the carrying of guns on their campuses (“Colleges”). With more and more shootings on campuses, especially with the tragedy at Virginia Tech in 2006, the states are starting to rethink their position on whether guns should be allowed on campuses; especially in Texas, where Texans are known for their guns. Even with a state like that, however, the questions still remain: Will allowing students with guns make campuses a safer environment? Will it make students feel safer? As most controversial issues goes, there are two sides to the debate.

Texas, along with several other states signed a bill allowing concealed carry of firearms on campus, believing “that mass murderers target gun-free zones, including colleges and universities that ban firearms on campus” (Defilippis & Hughes). Furthermore, it is stated that gun advocates not only believe that firearms could obviate massacres on campus but also prevent sexual assault. Defilippis and Hughes argue that claims such as these are flawed and ignore the risks that come with allowing students and faculty to carry guns on school

“If you’ve got a person thats raped because you didn't let them carry a firearm to defend themselves, I think you’re responsible,” State Representative Dennis K. Baxley of Florida said during a debate in a house subcommittee. When a person goes out for the night and are heading back home after the party, game, etc there is a chance someone is capable of doing something to them therefore having a licensed gun will protect them. A student should be able to defend his or hers self at all cost. Having a CCW can be the reason a person can save themselves or someone else’s life. The shooting at Virginia Tech in 2007 was one of the deadliest shootings in US history, when a gunmen went on a shooting spree leaving more than 30 students and faculty members dead. If the campus carry law was passed before this disaster took place there would not have been as many casualties and many of these killings would have been prevented. However, now lawmakers in 10 states are pushing the campus carry law, assuring that violence in school is reduced in a dramatic number. According, to CNN.com many people disagree with the campus carry law due to the fact that most school shootings are by students when they are out partying or acting juvenile. Many people say that a college campus is not a place for gun, but people do not take into consideration that all these incidents

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 would you do if you found out that the exact government that feeds you and handles all economic decisions somehow has the power to alter your perception on real life events to make you believe something that isn’t true? Have you ever heard something on TV that you just couldn’t believe? Remember when the Dallas shootings were going on the media said the shooter was, “picking off police officers with a rifle from an elevated surface.” Then they showed you pictures from the peaceful protests where there was this built African American with an army shirt. The media claimed that the man was the main suspect of the shooting but further research found that same man handed his firearm over to authorities before the shooting happened,

According to the FBI, there were 49 handgun murders for every one civilian justifiable homicide in 1994 (Fisherman). In fact, carrying concealed weapons makes you more vulnerable. Researcher Arthur Kellerman, Director of the Center for Injury Control at Emory University, warns, “If the bad guys know more people are carrying guns, they just might shoot first and reach for the wallet later.” (Sojourners)

Criminals will always have guns. Instead of being victims, people with a concealed carry license are trained in safety. People will feel safer from criminals if they can carry guns. ” PhD. Lott calculated that 1,570 murders, 4,177 rapes, 60,000 aggravated assaults, and 12,000 robberies could have been prevented between 1977 and 1992 if concealed carry had been legal in every US state during that time period.”(procon.org). Concealed carry can help crime go down. ”

Did you know that the concealed carry of firearms has dropped the crime rates in every state across the United States in the states that enforce it. Concealed carry is a very controversial topic in the U.S.. Citizens are either on the pro side, or they are totally against it. Every state in the union either has a law or is in the process of making a law for the concealed carry of weapons. The concealed carry of firearms drastically lowers the crime rates and make the states that have it much safer.

Research shows that states with a law against concealed carry weapons have an 11% higher crime rate than the national average (“Gun Facts,” 2013).

“Moran,“ the voice on the other end of the line said, it’s tone clipped and tight. Unusual, I thought, for Smith, who typically sounded like a frog with a head-cold. “Get your worthless ass to the 7.15 Warehouse.” Now I was sure of it, Smith didn’t just sound sharp, he sounded anxious, frightened. “You hear me? 7.15 Warehouse now. RIGHT. FUCKIN’ NOW.”

Shootings on college campuses are far too common. They are a tragedy for not only the victims but the families of the perpetrators. There are a multitude of tools that colleges employ to prevent shootings such as campus police forces, interagency coordination with local and state law enforcement, in addition to free counseling services for students and faculty. However, despite these multiple protective measures, shootings still occur and lives are lost. A solution that will bring aid in countering this problem is allowing students to possess concealed carry permits on campus. Students should be allowed to have concealed carry permits on campus because it makes campuses safer, discourage people from getting the idea to attack students because they are armed, and could help prevent or mitigate sexual assaults from happening.

Recently, the issue of whether weapons should be allowed on college campuses has become a hot topic. State laws such as the “concealed carry law” and “gun free zones” were reviewed in the process. To fully understand the issue at hand, one must understand these laws. “Gun free zones” are areas that prohibit any unauthorized individual from possessing a firearm in named locations, which include school zones. State laws such as the “concealed carry” laws address the rules and regulations for carrying weapons in public. Currently, there is no federal law covering the issuance of concealed carry permits. Supporters of "gun-free zones" argue that they reduce crime and provide people with a safe place. Opponents of “gun-free zones” argue that they only give the illusion of safety and are targets for those wishing to incite violence since they know the population is unarmed. Given these circumstances, allowing weapons on campus is a controversial topic with several different pros and cons.