Guns And Grades: Higher Education Weighs In On Campus Gun Laws
The fate of our education system
Two weeks ago, students of Stoneman Douglas High School were faced with a nightmare that no parent wants their child to experience. Seventeen lives were tragically cut short, as former student Nikolas Cruz opened fire resulting in what would become the 18th school shooting in America since the new year began. This act of terrorism not only changed the lives of students and teachers, but parents as well as they are now unnerved by the lack of protection their children face. As the country mourns the lives that were lost in Florida, many are calling for congress to make tighter restrictions on gun possession. The recent events have also sparked a controversial debate on teachers having guns in the classroom, something that really shouldn’t be allowed or even up for debate, but “American values” are seeming to take precedent. Questions are being raised with a cynical undertone and the suggestion of whether it is the students or the teachers people should be worried about having firearms?
In May of 2017, Georgia governor Nathan Deal passed a bill that would allow permit holders, 21 years of age or older to carry their guns on public campuses. In addition to this bill and in conjunction with nine other states, students now have the right to carry their guns while going to class. Causing many to ponder the necessity for students to carry guns instead of textbooks.
Dr. Adrienne Jones is all too familiar with the experience of having guns locked and loaded on a college campus. Now an Assistant professor for the political science department at Morehouse College, Dr. Jones perviously worked at the University of Wisconsin Platteville where students were allowed to openly carry.
“I knew that there were guns on campus…” said Dr. Jones, “the presence of guns raises a sense of danger.”
“College professors know they’re at risk…we talk about it and we adjust our behavior,” she added.
If professors feel they have to adjust their behavior because a student is carrying a gun, why should students be allowed to carry one in the first place? Well for those that are for the campus carry law, they believe that giving students the right to carry their guns on campus lowers the possibility of another mass shooting. However, this could cause more complications instead of being a solution. One has to take into account the students, alumni, faculty and parents that are against this campus carry law. One also has to to consider what this may mean for the school’s reputation (i.e. students willingness to attend and state funding) once they put the law in place.
“I would think twice about sending my child to a school that allowed guns on campus.” said Dr. Andrew Douglas, Associate professor at Morehouse college. Like Dr. Douglas many parents would be just as concerned about having their child in an environment where guns are ever-present. What does this law mean as it pertains to the quality of education and overall safety of the students? Besides the obvious, what are the other latent issues with the inclusion of this law?
Aside from professors taking a stance on the issue, students are just as concerned about this issue as well. Kevin Tolliver, a sophomore at Morehouse College expressed his concerns about students carrying guns around campus.
“Anybody with a gun can take someone’s life and I’d feel intimidated by people that would be carrying a gun on campus,” said Tolliver.
Student life could become more strained if not hostile when the presence of guns comes into the equation. Which could lead to less people expressing their opinions on situations, less interaction between students, and overall communal disfunction. As a student myself, I’m also concerned about students carrying guns on campus.
But what about the people that happen to own firearms? what is their stance on this issue? Dr. Gregory Price professor of Economics at Morehouse College and a gun owner himself had an interesting take on the controversial topic.
“I would be unsettled by students having guns on campus” said Dr. Price, “but I would have to live with that if the school allowed it.”
Dr. Price further expressed his concerns about students having guns on campus but not because of the fear of another mass shooting.
“It would seem that the risk of self-harm would be something that we would have to watch out for, that could make student life very difficult,” he added.
So why hasn’t congress made any changes to owning and obtaining a gun if these concerns exist?
“Congress is not convinced that they have to do anything” said Dr. Price, “when you ban things you create what’s called a black market.”
What is it going to take for congress to make the first move? Will citizens have to continue school walkouts and protests? What should the colleges and schools do to protect their students and their faculty?
We do not have a solution to this fairly *new* problem just yet, so for right now we may be dealing with a deadly new normal.
The best advice for all is to stay sharp, stay vigilant, and do your part, until this situation is resolved.
Isaiah D. Johnson is a student a Morehouse college studying political science with a minor in journalism
