The new law, SB 11, will make Texas college campuses safer because responsible adults who carry guns are law abiding citizens who can prevent mass shooting from happening on campuses and save many lives. This law which will take effect in August, will make campuses safer and the students will feel more protected. Adults who are licensed are allowed to carry concealed handguns in most places and can protect other people.
It is a right of all citizens to carry guns and this is guaranteed by the Constitution. It is said that: “The right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed” (The Witchitan). Only people who are licensed will be allowed to bring guns which are concealed on college campuses. There will be almost no restricted areas since it will be possible to carry guns all over the campus, all the time. The police officers who take care about the safety on university campuses will be informed about the names of those people who are licensed to carry guns and this will be beneficial. With the increased number of mass shootings, the best solution is for the holders that are allowed to carry guns to protect the students due to the police being late at times. The law is beneficial because “students will be able to protect themselves and their fellow classmates.” (The Witchitan). This is important because students will feel safer knowing that they will be protected by righteous people carrying guns.
It is true that being armed on college campuses will make students and staff more vulnerable as well because it will be easy to get on college campus armed. However, these people will be protected as well since most of the licensed adults who carry guns are responsible people who are trained to use them and save lives. There are risks related to carrying guns, but the possibility of reacting before the arrival of the police will make colleges safer. “Active shooters do not stop until force is applied. This law will allow the proper force to be applied in the fastest way possible” (The Witchitan). It is important to be aware of the rights that people have and to be in the position to protect themselves in the case of the police being late.
The Senate in Texas allowed adults who have licenses to take concealed handguns all over college campuses including dorms and classrooms. Private universities have a choice whether to allow this or not. According to the SB 11, students will have zones where weapons will be prohibited and they will be: “in locations of their choice — establishing their own rules on where handguns are carried and how they're stored based on public safety concerns” (Smith). Therefore, students will know where they are safe and how this law is beneficial for them. The students who do not like to be surrounded by armed people could choose to spend more time in parts of the campuses where there are no guns. Also, there will be a way of handling the guns safely, which can make students feel protected. The goal is to protect the students, which is why the areas where handguns are not allowed will be very small. Some people believe that this bill is not a good idea because college campuses are places where there is too much conflicting emotions and the presence of guns could be detrimental to the security. However, if all the precautions are taken into consideration, nothing bad should happen.
The goal of senators is to make private universities be protected by this bill as well because it is about equality. “Lawmakers who argued for requiring private universities to follow the same rules as public institutions said it was a matter of fairness” (Smith). According to the Constitution, people who are licensed are allowed to carry handguns to many places and this could be especially beneficial for the protection of students on college campuses where mass shootings happen too often. This bill might scare the potential shooters from committing crime because they will know that they might get caught easier than before.
Texas is not the only state that will allow guns on campuses and that is one reason more for this bill to be considered as a success. “As semesters pass without incidents in states where concealed carry is allowed in campus buildings, the apocalyptic predictions of carry opponents lose credibility” (Zalneraitis). The number of states that are interested in trying to adopt the law that allows carrying guns on college campuses is increasing. People who are allowed to carry guns are supposed to carry them on campuses as well in order to serve as protection against crime. Criminals who want to commit mass shootings will still manage to enter campuses, but there will be licensed adults to protect innocent students and other people who work there. If this were not possible, students and staff would be completely unprotected.
The issue with the SB 11 has flaws due to the fact that there are positive and negative implications related to it. However, the positive ones prevail because student safety is what matters most and armed and trained individuals can protect their lives if necessary. Sometimes, police can arrive too late and SB 11 is bound to reduce the number of potential victims.
Works Cited
"Guns should be allowed everywhere on campus." The Witchitan. N.p., 4 Nov. 2015. Web. 17 Mar. 2016. <http://thewichitan.com/guns-on-campus-15/>.
Smith, Morgan. "Campus Carry Gets Final Approval in Texas Senate." The Texas Tribune. N.p., 30 May 2015. Web. 17 Mar. 2016. <http://www.texastribune.org/2015/05/30/campus-carry-gets-final-approval-texas-senate/>.
Zalneraitis, Zachary. "Campus carry offers protection: Opposing view." Usa Today. N.p., 8 June 2015. Web. 17 Mar. 2016. <http://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/2015/06/08/campus-carry-students-for-concealed-carry-editorials-debates/28705785/>.
