Rachel Stoltzfoos on October 8, 2015
The deadly shooting at Umpqua Community College in Oregon has convinced many nearby residents to buy a gun and obtain a concealed carry permit.
“It’s opened my eyes,” one man who was on campus during the shooting told The New York Times. “I want to have a gun in the house to protect myself, to protect the people I’m with.”
Only a few people interviewed by TheNYT expressed support for gun control. Many others said they would buy guns, and some said they would obtain a concealed carry permit. Others said campus security guards should carry guns, and a student started a petition to get concealed carry rights on campuses.
The shooting “has actually tightened the embrace of guns,” reported TheNYT, and many residents are “bristling” at President Barack Obama’s call for more gun control.
“That’s why we have guns,” a local woman who sells guns out of her house told TheNYT. “We don’t have the government dictating when to get on our knees.”
“We are a weapons family,” added another woman with a 6-year-old autistic son. “I like to have the ability to protect myself and my child.”
