Students wear empty gun holsters to class to advocate concealed carry

After the Virginia Tech shooting last spring, the issue of firearms on campus became a politically charged topic of discussion, with many gun owners claiming that the outcome of the massacre would have been different had licensed gun owners been able to carry their guns to campus.

Last week a group of Tech students showed their support for concealed carry of firearms by participating in a nationwide protest, sponsored by Students for Concealed Carry on Campus, in which they walked around classes for a week wearing empty gun holsters.

"The whole idea is that the empty holster signifies vulnerability, being forced to not be able to protect ourselves and those around us," said Chris Turner, a third year Mechanical Engineering major and the coordinator of the protest.

The protest was a nationwide effort with participants at over 110 campuses. Students for Concealed Carry on Campus (SCCC) did not provide any membership data or registration for individuals that wished to participate in the protest. However, it did contain strict regulations for the protest.

Should the participants wish to identify with SCCC they were admonished to carry nothing in their holsters and leave all covered holsters open so that campus law enforcement could easily verify that they were empty.Participants were also instructed that under no circumstances to visit any high, middle or elementary schools while taking part in the protest.

"We didn't have any trouble with the protest from the Tech administration....The only concern that the Tech PD expressed was that the holsters be empty," Turner said.

Turner partnered with the GT marksmen club to help organize the protest, and SCCC is not a chartered student organization. The majority of participants learned of the protest through word-of-mouth.

"We are expecting a legislative response, if not just from the Tech protest, from the national one. This is really a grass-roots campaign though, so it really depends on how many people get out there and how many politicians see it happening around the country," Turner said.

In relation to current campus crime, Turner proposes that the ability to carry firearms onto campus would decrease the rate of violent crime.

"If someone comes onto campus and doesn't know which of us is carrying a gun, then they are going to be a lot less likely to risk anything," Turner said.

As for the safety issues inherent with maintaining an armed population, the SCCC proposes the creation of gun lockers on campus to prevent theft, as well as required gun registration and training.

"It is unfortunate that some of our students who live off campus have to walk through areas of Atlanta that are not particularly safe, and are not able to protect themselves because they can't have guns on campus at all. It wouldn't be that hard to install gun lockers on campus," Turner said.

The SCCC maintains that the presence of firearms in the hands of licensed gun owners would cut down on campus crime, lessen the administrative burdens placed on campus police, and increase gun awareness.