Gun Control : Gun Control In College Campuses?

Throughout its history, the United States has had a fascination with guns. Americans have used guns in times of war, for protection, and for hunting. Americans also use guns when they are intent on killing people. When violence happens in school shootings, drive-by shootings, assassination of public officials, or in the workplace and shopping malls, Americans demand something be done. This demand fuels the debate between gun rights and gun control activists. It fuels the debate over the interpretation of the Second Amendment. It fuels the debate on allowing citizens to carry concealed weapons in gun-free zones. This makes us ask the question: Should guns be banned from college

Guns on college campuses without the proper training could be even more dangerous. While I was conducting my interview with Officer Shaw, campus security for Bethune-Cookman university. He gave me insight on how they went go through months of specific training to be able to even work here. He feels as though only security should be the only ones allowed to have guns. But, if others were allowed to, it should be faculty because of their level of maturity. He strongly feels that there should be a zero tolerance for

Although most colleges allow students to bring guns on campus they do not allow them to be brought into class or administrative buildings. Many gun advocates would like to see gun normalized everywhere and a good way to that is to implement that is when people are young and developing their values and understanding of the world. The passing of campus carry laws have exploded in recent years favoring strong proponents the theory, if we provide the law to allow students and faculty to carry we remove gun free zones. Therefore protecting the population on campuses with the thinking that mass shooters prey on those schools with gun free zones. Several of the deadliest

In 2007, 32 students and teachers die after being held at gunpoint on the campus of Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University by a student, Seung Hui Cho, who attended the school later on dies from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. In all 27 students and 5 faculty members died. I really think that guns shouldn't be allowed on college campuses at all because it will cause a distraction from the learning environment, would lead to an increased number of suicides by college students, a gun might go off by accident, most college students are too young to carry a concealed handgun license, and school shootings don't happen that often and college campuses are very safe so, therefore, there is no need to carry a concealed weapon on a campus.

Gun control on campuses all across the United States of America has been a controversial and popular debate topic for me ever since I woke up one morning on April 20, 1999 and witnessed, what at that time was the deadliest campus shooting in our history, at that time. Obviously I am talking about the shooting that occurred at Columbine High School in Columbine, Colorado where Dylan Klebold and Eric Harris attacked their school and opened fire on helpless students, brutally murdering 12 students, a teacher, and then killing themselves. I may have been young at the time of the shooting, but it definitely was my first interaction with deadly violence in a campus setting and opened my eyes to the harsh reality of how crazy our world can be at

While the debate and argument over the carry on campus law continues, more and more concerns are surfacing about the jeopardy it could put our nation in. Are students even mature enough for the handling of weapons? Students are not to be trusted with guns and college campus should stay a gun-free zone. Carrying a gun in general requires responsibility that people of a young age sometimes tend not to have. The handling a firearm and a lack of responsibility within a person can be a very dangerous situation. Judgement and maturity of such a young group are things to consider when thinking about the carry on campus law and a student’s capability to make smart choices when handling a weapon can’t be trusted.

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

People who support allowing students to carry a concealed handgun argue that it can easily stop a public shooting spree. They expect the opposing shooter to be right in front of the concealed handgun licensed holder and for everything to go nice and smooth. According to Students for Concealed Carry, “most shootings occur at a close range and are over in a matter of seconds (Students for Concealed Carry 650). This isn’t necessarily true. At the peak of a major school shooting, everybody is going to be scrambling around, looking for the closest place of safety. How do you expect for the concealed handgun licensed holder to distinguish who the real “bad guy” is? In “Do We Really Need More Guns On Campus?,” the

Mass Shootings are among the most controversial topics talk about in modern day society, and this is due to the apparent rise in shootings over the past couple of years. The nation has witnessed some of the most gruesome shootings in History such as Virginia Tech, and Sandy Hook Elementary school shooting. From the aftermath of these shootings, a solution was found to prevent such things from happening which is allow concealed-carry weapons on college campuses. It is said if there are more guns on campuses, the chances of a gun man taking out more innocent lives are less likely due to the amount of people with guns. Despite this sound solution of concealed carry on college campuses, the reality is that it causes more problems than it solves, and there are better solutions to this problem at hand. But, what exactly is the true nature of school shootings, is it actually a true threat to our education system?

The Students for Gun-Free Schools organization tells us that in Virginia, the only state requirement one must meet is a four-hour sit-down session of training (638). Who is going to learn how to properly handle and shoot a gun in four hours? Just because someone owns a gun does not mean they know how to aim and successfully shoot their target. According to the article “Why Our Campuses Are Safer without Concealed Handguns,” the New York City Police Department shot their guns to conduct an experiment that showed that they successfully hit their target 28.3% of 364 total shots (639). This proves that even police officers don’t have the best accuracy when it comes to shooting. What makes them believe that an ordinary student can be a better

“Colleges and universities occupy a special place in American society. They are much more than a series of buildings and collection of individuals. Instead, they are dynamic living and learning environments where individuals with varying levels of maturity interact, often under stressful circumstances. While recognizing the right of responsible individuals to possess firearms under other circumstances, the unique characteristics of a university campus make the presence of firearms problematic. The shootings that have occurred in recent years at US colleges and universities have generated passionate debate about how best to prevent such violence and whether persons should be allowed to carry concealed guns on campuses. Experts believe there is no credible evidence that students or staff carrying guns would reduce crime. In fact, research has shown that the brains of most college students have not fully developed regarding impulse control and judgment” (Dickerson). Therefore, guns should not be allowed on college campuses because it would lead to an escalation in violent crime, distract from the learning environment, and lead to accidental discharge incidents.

Due to the recent upheaval of violent crimes on campus, many pro-gun activist have suggested that both the students and teachers should be allowed to carry concealed weapons on campus. Those for this may claim that their rights have been violated because many college campuses refuse to allow weapons of any kind on campus. It is not the right to carry a gun which is in debate here, but rather it is whether or not guns should be allowed on a college campus. The Constitution of The United States of America already grants citizens the right to carry guns, and being in the south, I am by far no stranger to seeing a gun from time-to-time, but it is not appropriate for guns to be in a vulnerable area such as a college campus. There are already too many guns available to the public, and allowing them on an educational facility would greatly increase the likelihood of injury or death. Americans, as previously mentioned, have the right to bear arms, and this should be held sacred, and not infringed, taken away, or limited. However, stricter firearm control should be implemented for those who chose to carry a concealed weapon, and gun control should be done by having stricter certification processes before a firearm or gun permit is issued, intensive psychological evaluation for the person or persons applying for a gun permit or a gun,and greater educational requirements for gun owners and firearm safety.

Despite our whereabouts everyone main concern is gun violence; there is always an argument concerning guns. Should be mandated or not? Is it life or death situation or plain old homicide? With that question being asked by Americans nationwide, should students be allowed to carry guns or campus? Or should we fear that they all will use it for all the wrong reasons intended?

Campuses are "a risky environment for guns" because there are plenty of young and unstable men and women who abuse of drugs and alcohol. The writers characterize college students as cohort, people that because of their short age are prone to change their emotions unpredictably. They are drug and alcohol abusers also. I disagree with this "description" of the colleges students. In colleges and universities you can find diversity of students. It's true that some of them have those harmful habits but many of them are very responsible and committed with their schooling. Is a broad generalization tell that because somebody is young is necessarily a drug addict or an alcoholic. Actually is a time that requires focus, effort and responsibility because the majority are studying and working as well. There's no really time for drugs or

The college population and their environment is a pretty wild one. It is general knowledge that the college life always has to include parties, drugs, and alcohol, well besides being studious; they are a very wild bunch. Without the guns being allowed, there are already problems with the immature young adults that only look for a way to blow off some steam. Now imagine those same immature adults who are known for all those bad habits because of all the pressure they are under from the university, or they are just people looking for some fun. Giving college students permission to have a concealed gun on campus, is just an accident waiting to happen. Among all that chaos, imagine a drunken student has the possibility of having a gun on him. It has been proven that alcohol does mess with your cognitive abilities, it deteriorates the way you think; now imagine him or her with a