Our Voice

Since the publication of a Feb. 20 story in The Colonnade (“Packing heat in the classroom?”) students and faculty have been sharing their reactions to proposed legislation in the Georgia General Assembly that would, if approved, allow those with a concealed weapons permit to carry guns on the campuses of public universities and research facilities.

The responses have been representative of both those in favor of the legislation and those against it. Through e-mail, we have received the opinions of professors, most of whom are not in favor of people being able to carry guns on campus. Meanwhile, many of the comments on GCSUnade.com accredited to students, for the most part, favor the proposed legislation.

Mary Bess Parks, a sophomore mass communication major, stated in a comment on GCSUnade.com: “I really hope this legislation passes. I would feel much safer if it did.” On the other side of the fence, Bill Fisher, chair and an associate professor in the art department stated in an e-mail that since the discussion of allowing guns on campus has arisen he is “. afraid for us, and of us.”

We at The Colonnade, do not feel that allowing guns to be carried on campus would be beneficial to life at GCSU. Although some have argued that the Virginia Tech massacre of 2007 could have resulted in fewer deaths if students there had been able to defend themselves by using guns, we feel that the possibility of an on-campus attack at GCSU can only be increased with the allowed presence of guns. While self-defense of people on campus is certainly a legitimate concern, the passing of this proposed legislation would carry with it much risk.

Aside from safety, how would the presence of guns in our classrooms contribute to the comfort of students on campus? We currently have the freedom to walk into our classrooms and assume that we are in a safe situation. This could change if we knew that students, professors and staff members were allowed to carry concealed deadly weapons. There is a certain level of discomfort about sitting next to someone who can, at any moment, pull out a gun. Guns, in any situation, create a climate of fear and that is not something we believe would be healthy for campus life.

For more information about both sides of this important issue visit www.concealedcampus.org and www.nogunsoncampus.org.

Mary Bess Parks was a staff writer for The Colonnade in 2009.

Please send responses to ColonnadeLetters@gcsu.edu.

Posted by Colonnade Archives on Feb 26 2010. Filed under Our Voice. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry