United States: Should We Arm College Campuses?

In the fight against deadly shootings, some people are calling for students and teachers to arm themselves — a subject that is generating much debate.

In order to fight against deadly shootings, should we allow students and teachers to carry weapons when they come to college? This question has not been asked anywhere else in the world but has been growing steadily on the other side of the Atlantic, and has led to a number of radically different responses. This week, Tennessee became the latest state to allow handguns on education campuses, provided that they are concealed under clothing, in a bag, or in a car’s glove box.

In contrast, on Tuesday, the governor of Georgia opposed a resounding veto to a similar law at the last minute, though it was easily passed by the state government. Nathan Deal, a Republican, believes that the ideas of allowing students to arm themselves at will in order to make them feel more secure was “highly questionable.” “From the early days of our nation and state, colleges have been treated as sanctuaries of learning where firearms have not been allowed,” the governor justified. In the land of Colt and Smith & Wesson, such “sanctuaries” often tend to come crashing down. It would nonetheless be wrong to imagine that weapons have invaded American lecture halls. In a country where 90 deaths are recorded every day as a result of guns, legislators are in fact responding to a double movement; one advocating more weapons on campuses, and the other advocating more restrictions, both in the name of so-called “security.”

Traumatic Events at Virginia Tech

This debate comes in the wake of several school massacres that have shocked America in recent years, the worst being the 2007 shooting at Virginia Tech, where a lone gunman killed 32 people before killing himself. More recently, on the other side of the U.S., a man methodically killed seven people in 2012 at a little university in Oakland, California, and another killed nine people at a university in Oregon in 2015. The all-powerful National Rifle Association, the big gun lobby group, believes that such statistics would be impossible if students had the right to bear arms in order to protect themselves. Under its leadership, bills allowing people to carry weapons on campuses were discussed in at least 19 states in 2013, and in 14 states in 2014, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL). But only a small percentage of these bills have been voted on and come into force.

In contrast, again according to the NCSL, recent killings promoted five states in 2013 to consider introducing restrictions for small firearms at colleges. These laws, however, did not come to fruition, due to pressure from the NRA. The result is a complicated mosaic, with 20 states banning weapons on campuses, about 20 others leaving the decision to educational institutions, and the remaining 10 allowing people to carry weapons under certain conditions, one of which is being in possession of a permit. Colorado, Idaho, Kansas, Tennessee, and Arkansas are among the states in the latter group.

Disciplinary Board … without Weapons

In Tennessee and Arkansas, possession of a firearm is limited to just educational staff. The new law in Tennessee prohibits teachers from bringing a weapon to a disciplinary board or a public event taking place in a gym. In Mississippi, a student or teacher can go to classes with a weapon if they have previously received training on how to handle their weapon from an authorized instructor. The greatest victory recently won by the “pro-gun” lobby was unsurprisingly in Texas, where gun culture is well and truly alive. In this large southern state, starting Aug. 1, ad hoc licensed students will be able to visit all university buildings and sports hall dormitories with a handgun. This date was not chosen at random, as it coincides with the 50th anniversary of a rifle massacre by a student who was standing on the observation tower of the University of Texas in Austin. At this prestigious college, Daniel Hamermesh, professor emeritus of economics, caused quite a stir by announcing his resignation in a letter published by the press. “With a huge group of students my perception is that the risk that a disgruntled student might bring a gun into the classroom and start shooting at me has been substantially enhanced by the concealed-carry law,” Prof. Hamermesh wrote. He added that he would be continuing his classes in Australia.