Our Rights to Concealed Carry

Our Rights to Concealed Carry

Have you or someone you loved ever been in a public area and have seen a rather shady or intimidating person or group. Maybe you’ve witnessed a robbery or a mugging and could not defend yourself or someone else. Do you think it could have been prevented if you had a concealed weapon to defend yourself with? Everyday citizens should be allowed the right to carry a concealed weapon in public because they can then defend themselves, they can gain the feeling of security, and they are within their 2nd amendment right to do so.

A report made by Carl Bialik of The Wall Street Journal showed that police response times have “ a national average of 11 minutes”. If it takes police 11 minutes to respond to a 911 call, then what’s stopping a criminal from harming or killing the victim(s) before the police arrive? A 2000 analysis of FBI crime data shows that after various states implemented laws regarding concealed weapons as a legal form of defense there has been “reduced murders by 8.5%, rapes by 5%, aggravated assaults by 7%, and robbery by 3%” (ProCon.org). If someone has a concealed weapon and pulls it out in the name of self-defense, then they won’t have to worry about relying on the police when they are in danger.

Most people who have been in a high school history class has talked about the 2nd amendment. This amendment states “A well-regulated militia being necessary to the security of a free state, the right to bear arms shall not be infringed” (U.S. Constitution, Amendment II).

This means that law-abiding U.S. citizens should not have their right to concealed carry taken away. It should not matter whether a gun is out of sight or visible on a citizen’s waist, People should never have their right to carry their firearms with them taken away.

Concealed carry license owners will often say that they got their permit as a form of insurance that gives them another sense of security. In fact, a 2015 poll from Gallup.com shows that “56% of americans say more concealed weapons would make the country safer”. Even if 44% of the population does not agree with this statement, The ability to apply for a permit and to carry a concealed weapon is completely optional. Not everyone has to agree over whether or not concealed weapons make you feel safe. If you feel safer with a firearm on your waist, then you should have the right to carry said firearm.

A lot of citizens who oppose the right to concealed carry will often bring up the fact that some criminals were allowed to carry their weapons and also had a concealed carry permit. A recent statistic from the Violence Policy Center justifies this claim stating that “Between May 2007 and March 2014, 14 law enforcement officers and 622 other people were killed nationally (Not is self-defense) by individuals who were legally allowed to carry a concealed weapon”. What a lot of citizens who use claims like this don’t understand is that