Sentiment on campus is against new gun law
Faculty particularly concerned about weapons in classes.
Four days after a gunman killed nine people at a community colle ge in Oregon and rekindled the national debate on whether gun laws should be tightened, the University of Texas held its second and fifinal public forum on new state leg- islation that expands campus carry rights.
Monday’s forum at UT’s Texas Union drew 150 people, compared with about 250 who attended a forum Sept. 29. The smaller turnout was surprising inasmuch as the fifirst forum took place before Christopher Harper-Mercer, 26, went on a shooting rampage Thursday at Umpqua Community College and killed himself after exchanging fire with police officers who had rushed to the campus.
Perhaps the turnout, in a ballroom in which about 900 chairs had been set up, reflected the fact that the forum fell in the middle of the afternoon, when many students were in
class. In any event, two things were abundantly clear: Views on the new law, Senate Bill 11, are highly polarized, and sentiment on campus is running heavily against it.
State law has permitted holders of concealed handgun licenses to carry weapons on the grounds of public university campuses since 1995. SB 11 allows people to carry in campus buildings, but university presidents can establish rules that would essentially create limited gun-free zones.
The law’s critics want university officials to write rules that are as restrictive as possible, while supporters of the law want few, if any, restrictions regarding where concealed handguns can be carried.
“I am concerned about my safety in the classroom,” said Joanne Richards, a semi-retired teacher of reproductive health in the College of Pharmacy. “If guns are permitted in my classroom, I will retire fully.”
Martha Hilley, a music professor, said she currently has a sign on her office that says no liquids are allowed, to protect musical equipment.
“Should I redo my sign and say no liquids or guns allowed? If I do, I don’t know how much trouble I’d be in, but I think it’s worth the trouble,” Hilley said.
Proponents of expanded campus carry rights, including Tina Maldonado, a UT staff member and firearms instructor, said the critics have it all wrong.
“Campus carry is going to make this a safer campus because of the probability of firearms in the classroom,” she said.
Brayden Eychner, a Navy veteran and junior at UT, offered an unusual twist on the issue. He said he intends to carry a concealed handgun once the law goes into effect for universities on Aug. 1, but he said he would honor a teacher’s request to keep guns out of a classroom.
“I will be more than willing to secure it elsewhere,” he said, “because I am a trained and responsible gun owner.”
Opinions aside, the university must comply with the law, said Steven Goode, a law professor who chairs a 19-member panel charged with making recommendations to UT President Gregory L. Fenves on the issue. The panel’s charge is to come up with recommendations that ensure compliance while at the same time making the campus as safe as possible.
“It’s still a work in progress,” Goode said, adding that the panel will report to Fenves in midor late November.