Debate on Guns on School Campus

To carry or not to carry: aiming at safety on campus

On March 10, 2017 when I was in my English class, my phone vibrated as messages from the school warned student to stay away from an evacuated area on the campus. The evacuation was then lifted after a suspicious item was found and determined to be safe. This was the first time I had encountered such security activities which raised my awareness of firearms on campus. In the wake of several campus shootings, the heated controversy surrounding the permit of guns on campus has circulated the nation for years. Even though people should have rights to protect themselves, it is not enough reason to allow guns within learning institutions, therefore, I believe guns should be banned on campus.

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First, presence of guns on campus will have negative impacts on the dynamics of learning environment. College campuses are the living and learning community of students and staff from different backgrounds, where freedom and openness in academic debate and intellectual exchange are encouraged. If guns are allowed in campus, the entire campus community will be in fear of their life, wondering if other fellow students or staff are carrying any guns and can pull them out if a dispute arises. Lecturers could fear that the students with poor grades may threaten them for better grades. An example is the notorious campus shooting at the University of Arizona in 2002: a failing nursing student shot three professors to death due to his anger and depression (Holguin). Campus will become emotionally threatening and crime-oriented environment. Dangerous weapons should never be carried around, even in concealed form, in such open learning environment.

Another argument for why guns should be banned on campus is young adults’ brains does not fully mature despite their physically mature appearance. Darby Dickerson, former dean of Texas Tech University School of Law, is an expert in higher education law and policy and is an elected member of the American Law Institute. She states that researchers have discovered that human brain change significantly during adolescences, and are not fully developed until about 24, with regard to thinking ability and judgment. Also, high-risk alcohol and other drug use among student population have long-term negative effects on brain development, which leads to poor decision making. According to the National Survey on Drug Use and Health (2015), 58 percent of full-time college students ages 18 to 22 drank alcohol in the past month compared with 48.2 percent of other persons of the same age. Researchers also estimated that each year, 1825 college students between the ages of 18 and 24 die from alcohol-related unintentional injuries; 696000 students between the ages of 18 and 24 are assaulted by another student who has been drinking (NIAAA). Therefore, granting college students access to guns will pose increased risks of incidents of self-injury, accidental shootings and even murders.

Furthermore, multiple individuals with firearms will negatively affect law enforcement officers’ response during emergency situations. It will lead to confusion over identifying attackers among many people who are carrying guns which they claim to protect themselves. Also, without training, armed individuals may harm innocents in an attempt to halt a bloodshed.

 Advocates for guns permit on campus claim that licensing of guns will increase their safety. They believe one should carry a gun in self-defense. Especially when newspapers splash headlines of campus shootings across the country, giving an impression that American college campuses are not safe, in response, there is an increasing urge for self-protection. Supporters for concealed carry on campus argue that armed students and staff will deter any aggressive acts toward the school, rather than becoming victims of violence. They claim that it will reduce crime. In contrast, the International Association of Campus Law Enforcement Administrators, Inc., (IACLEA), in its position statement, points out that:

There is no credible statistical evidence demonstrating that laws allowing the carrying of concealed firearms reduce crime. In fact, the evidence suggests that permissive concealed carry laws generally will increase crime. Ian Ayres & John J. Donohue III, Shooting Down the “More Guns, Less Crime” Hypothesis, 55 Stan. L. Rev. 1193, 1285, 1296 (Apr. 2003); and Ian Ayres & John J. Donohue III, The Latest Misfires in Support of the “More Guns, Less Crime” Hypothesis, 55 Stan. L. Rev. 1371, 1397 (Apr. 2003).

The organization also insists that “use of a gun in self-defense appears to be a rare occurrence”. As explained, there is not enough evidence to prove that campus carry would reduce crime rate or guns would be used in self-defense solely.

Another argument gun right activists make to call for guns on campus is to protect women from sexual assaults. They argue perpetrators would less likely to attack women if they knew women around them might also be armed. Also, victims could have a chance to shoot attackers, assuming they would be able to use it effectively to protect themselves. However, reliable social science research indicates that based on the way victims typically react to these experiences, solving campus sexual assaults by arming women with firearms will not work. Studies show that 89 percent of campus sexual assaults involve drugs and/or alcohol (Krebs, Lindquist and Warner) and 90 percent of college sexual assaults are committed by someone the victim knows (Sampson 6). In such situations, victims would likely have a difficult time pulling out the gun to someone they associate with or when they are in frozen state due to drugs, alcohol or tonic immobility.

Even after looking at all the evidence there are still people who believe that firearms should be allowed on campus. Their argument could be valid if we consider the broader legal rights to carry guns if one has gone through mental health screenings, had extensive trainings and passed all the tests before obtaining the license. It would be ideal if every gun license holder had gone through many difficult exams to determine if he/ she is qualified to use guns. However, it is easier than before to obtain a license in many states these days, raising the question if those license holders are well-trained and mentally stable or not.

Allowing everyone to carry a gun cannot solve the crimes; indeed, it may have the potential to dramatically increase violence on college campuses. Campus security must be left to well-trained professionals. They have proficient techniques to defend campuses against violent attacks without harming innocent students. Instead of granting permission to carry guns on campus, preventive and preparative measurers should be taken and well developed to improve school safety.

References

Dickerson, Darby. “White Paper-Guns on Campus.” 17 February 2011. The National Behavioral Intervention Team Association (NaBITA) Web site. White Paper. 19 March 2017. .

Holguin, Jaime. Eerie Letter From University Killer. 31 October 2002. Web. 19 March 2017.

IACLEA. “IACLEA Position Statement: Concealed Carrying of Firearms Proposals on College Campuses .” 12 Agust 2008. 24 March 2017. .

Krebs, C. P., et al. “College women’s experiences with physically forced, alcohol- or other drug-enabled, and drug-facilitated sexual assault before and since entering college.” Journal of American College Health (2009): 639-649. Print.

NIAAA. Alcohol Facts and Statistics. December 2015. 22 March 2017. .

SAMHSA. “2015 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH). Table 6.84B-Tobacco Product and Alcohol Use in Past Month among Persons Aged 18 to 22, by College Enrollment Status: Percentages, 2014 and 2015.” 2015. SAMHSA Website. 22 March 2017. .

Sampson, Rana. “Acquaintance rape of college students.” Problem-Oriented Guides for Police. n.d.