State Rep. Jesse Kremer, R-Kewaskum, and Sen. Devin LeMahieu, R-Oostburg, are currently attempting to push a reactionary and inflammatory bill through the Wisconsin state Legislature that would allow students to carry concealed firearms inside of university buildings. With the rise of tragedies involving gun violence at schools, this bill poses a grave threat to our students and faculty in not only an emergency scenario, but also in the day-to-day routine of classes. Allowing students, staff and visitors to carry concealed weapons inside of university buildings is irresponsible, and a risk that we can’t afford to take for a series of unproven “safety” benefits.
Chief among the issues this bill could present is that of safety. UWPD has opposed the idea of concealed carry in campus buildings, citing that the minimal training required to obtain a concealed carry permit would not adequately prepare a lawful gun owner to prevent any kind of tragedy.
“Officers go through hundreds and hundreds of hours of training, not just on the range but in classrooms and role playing,” said UWPD Public Information Officer Marc Lovicott. “But with [this concealed carry legislation], it’s a couple hours, and training is minimal at best. That’s a reason to be concerned.”
In the event of a shooting on campus, not only are the responding police officers tasked with making the split-second decision of identifying and differentiating concealed carry owners from active shooters, but the concealed carriers themselves are required to have an equal level of tactical decision-making. Imagine a scenario such as a packed game day at Camp Randall, where in the event of a shooting, even with as little as 1 percent of the crowd carrying firearms into the stadium, there are now 800 guns floating around in an environment where a stray bullet is all but guaranteed to injure a bystander. Furthermore, the federal Department of Justice has found in a 2005 study that 93 percent of crimes experienced by college students happen off campus, further proving how unnecessary and destabilizing this bill could be if signed into law.
Allowing concealed carry in campus buildings also fundamentally alters the learning environment. Even if the guns aren’t seen, professors and students both would be conscious of being in an area permeated by the presence of firearms. In an academic environment with existing tension and anxiety, the presence of lethal weapons may trigger students and faculty who are already on edge.
Chancellor Rebecca Blank has also expressed how students and faculty would find the campus less appealing with the addition of firearms inside campus buildings, and how we could potentially see many of these people going elsewhere to learn or teach.
“I think that we will lose staff and faculty if this happens, and we will lose students,” Chancellor Blank said in a Nov. 4 interview with The Daily Cardinal. Blank also mentioned that she envisions some police officers leaving UWPD if this passes, noting, she “couldn’t blame them” for not wanting to be in that environment.
UW-Madison is one of the top public universities in the country, and to possibly sacrifice that for some unproven countermeasures based on nonexistent evidence is folly. The brain drain this campus could experience because they feel unsafe in the presence of concealed firearms is not worth it.
“The answer to this epidemic we’re seeing with gun violence is not to arm more people, especially not on this campus which is a safe place,” Lovicott said.
The opportunity for concealed carry on campus to do any form of good is extremely limited, and is far outweighed by the challenges presented in its implementation. There is little to no empirical evidence to suggest that “good guys with guns” will prevent a tragedy from happening or stop it short. Our police officers and chancellor of the university have condemned the measure as reactionary and incendiary. The bill could cause an exodus of students, faculty, police officers and funding, as well as opening the door to new and unforeseen dangers to everyone who steps foot inside a university building.
How do you feel about concealed carry inside campus buildings? Please send all comments, questions and concerns to opinion@dailycardinal.com.
