By Matthew Barnes, Sports Editor
On Sunday, Oct. 7, fliers started spreading around campus pitching a new group that defends the Second Amendment. This group had its first meeting Oct. 8 at 9 p.m. in the Kinlaw Board Room. These posters triggered strong responses from the student body with some being ripped down and thrown away and a counter-response flier being hung up next to others.
Gun rights are a polarizing talking point in the political spectrum, and the conversation has spread to many universities. This flier left many unanswered questions (such as who is running the club or what is its ultimate vision), leading many students to attend the meeting in order to learn more.
Trevor Benson, who is not an Asbury student or alumnus, facilitated the meeting from the podium. He works as a Kentucky Field Representative for The Leadership Institute, which is a large organization that trains conservatives and ignites campus reform groups around the country. Benson said he received multiple emails from Asbury students expressing interest in starting a pro-gun rights club.
There were 21 people present for the meeting. It began with Benson establishing his identity and the goals of The Leadership Institute. After he had made his main points, students started raising their hands to ask questions and state opinions regarding the benefit of the club on campus.
This led to a lengthy civilized debate on how this cause fits Asbury’s mission and what kind of gun usage the club intended to support. Several different viewpoints were represented during the discussion. Some students supported arming security guards but not students or teachers. Others were in favor of students being allowed to use self-defense items such as pepper spray but nothing potentially fatal. Some were pushing for concealed carry on campus.
Kentucky is one of 23 states where the decision to ban or allow concealed carry weapons on campuses is made by each individual university. Asbury reports safety statistics on its website, including that there have been four on-campus arrests between 2014-16, all for drug violations. However, there have been 33 reports of theft and four sex offense reports in these years. Niche.com, a website providing rankings for colleges, neighborhoods and companies, does list Asbury as the fourth-ranked safest college in the state.
Juniors Maggie Richwine, Vice President of Student Activities, and Betsy Shifflett, Vice President of Student Governance, attended on behalf of Asbury Student Congress (ASC), and Richwine said there are obstacles that could be troublesome in making this an official club.
“I think the biggest roadblock would be student opinion,” said Richwine. “A lot of students would be opposed to this student group because there are already a number of conservative student groups on campus. Also beyond that, students are sensitive to anything that promotes guns on campus, whether it be held by security or any individual through a concealed carry permit. While the student group could obviously function without promoting guns on campus, we think there would still be hesitation from the student body.”
Two mandatory steps in order for the club to become official are finding a faculty advisor and garnering enough interest from the student body. There is a benchmark that at least six students need to be actively involved for a club to stay afloat and receive funding.
Many of the pro-gun students present argued that with increased gun control, criminals will be the only ones with access to weapons since they break the laws anyways, making the country more dangerous. They argued that mass shootings could happen anywhere, and they believe students would be much safer with firearms as a way to defend themselves.
Richwine and Shifflett believe that many students are passionate about this topic and outlets might be needed for healthy debates and discussions.
“Both Betsy and I agree that conversations about controversial topics are essential on this campus in order for the formation and growth of considerate and informed student leaders,” said Richwine. “If the goal of this club is to create such discussions and the student body feels supportive of that, then we do as well.”
She went on to say that the Executive Cabinet is making controversial discussions on campus a higher priority, which is evident from their planning of various “How To” sessions and #AreYouSerious events on such topics. Richwine suggested that the issue of gun control could have talkback sessions or even organized debates devoted to raising awareness and encouraging critical thinking from both perspectives.
Despite this, Benson believes this club is necessary to provide conservatives with an avenue to connect with people of similar opinions on the Second Amendment. He made clear that students holding conflicting viewpoints would be allowed to participate the club with the understanding that the club’s goals would not align with their stance.
No matter what view you may have on guns, the promotion of this potential club has cleared the floor for Asburians to engage with one another on their desire for Asbury’s future with firearms.
