The guns on college campus debate is a polarizing issue to university students and faculty. Will allowing guns on college campuses deter the overall crime at a university? In the past 10 years, shootings have occurred at a higher rate on college campuses. A few unfortunate gun related incidents occurred at Virginia Tech and at Northern Illinois University.  In each of these cases, it left many students dead and left even more questions as to why situations like this continue to affect college campuses. However, there is one problem to these shootings; all of these crimes have happened in states that are against guns on college campuses. States like Utah, Colorado, and Idaho are states that allow you to carry concealed firearms on college campus and have seen no shootings on campus. This raises the question, do guns pose a threat to universities or act as a security measure? 

This is may not be the most popular opinion, but the addition of guns on college campuses can be very beneficial. Some college campuses are allowing guns on campuses and in the classroom while others are not allowing guns and remaining a gun free zone. In 2013 there are nineteen states that have legalized concealed carry on university campuses. Additional in 2014 fourteen more states joined the legalization of guns on college campuses "Hultin". Still with states joining, some state like South Carolina neglect to change their policy's or state laws on allowing guns on college campuses. Allowing guns on college campuses is not to try an increase violence, but to do the opposite and make petechial perpetrator stop wanting to commit violence acts of harm. Guns on campuses would do nothing but keep the students and faculty safer. 

As colleges grow and expand their school hours, students are more susceptible to walk the streets at all hours of the night while they attend night school classes. Some students and faculty walk to their cars, but some are forced to walk home because the university campus shuttle systems are shut down for the day. These women and men are forced to walk defenseless without a firearm even if they have obtained a concealed weapons permit and have received the proper training. Every year students and faculty do not report assaults and rapes because they are either too afraid or scared. A victim who knows this first hand is Amanda Collins. She tells her story of being brutally raped on a college campus. The incident took place in a parking garage in front of a police building but she could not do anything but lay there helpless, even though she had a concealed weapons permit. She was abiding by the college rules and did not want to be expelled. In her defense, she paid the ultimate price for something that could be easily fixed by allowing firearms on college campuses. It raises the question "what if"? If she had her concealed permit, she might have been able to stop her attacker and also could have stopped a future attack. The man that raped her had raped two other women and killing one. 

An individual should be able to protect themselves from potential shooting or threats against a person's life, no matter where you are city or not. In this day and age allowing guns on college campuses is a growing controversy between citizens and law makers. Some colleges around the United States are slowly changing their policies to allow guns on college campuses. The university needs to create and provide strict policies, rules and regulation for faculty and students to follow. Any personnel that chooses to ignore some the policies should face severe sentencing or punishment. A way for states to improve weapon safety and make sure firearms do not get into the wrong hands is that states need to increase the number of background checks per year. Additionally, they need to make gun stores, pawn shops and private sales register all firearms during the purchasing process. All concealed firearm carriers should have to take series of psychological tests to obtain their concealed firearm permit as well as have to be retested every six months. Being about to run these test would critical on see if anyone has something wrong with their mental state. But with the right people that have past their qualifications to obtain their concealed weapons permit, increasing the number of licensed firearm carriers on college campuses could reduce the risk violence and make potential offenders rethink their guilty act knowing that students and faculty may have a firearms.

Colleges today are very clear and decisive when it comes to guns on college campuses. They either allow it or they do not, but what these universities do not understand is that some of these colleges are located in cities. Most university's campuses border cities where normal everyday people live, including student, faculty and the local work force. These colleges are depriving citizens of their basic rights and liberties. Some women and men argue that universities are taking their constitutional rights away, even though it states clearly in the Declaration of Independence that United States citizens are given the opportunity to pursue "Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness." The second Amendment also states "A well-regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a Free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed," (heritage.com). So it raises the question, are college policies banning students, faculty and everyday citizens from their pursuit of happiness or are you violating their Second Amendment right by not allowing them to bear arms? These universities are restricting students and faculty from protecting themselves in a world that is changing every day and that is leaving people more susceptible to violent attacks on college campuses at all hours of the day and night. 

Guns in America have been around for a long time and have made a culture that American citizens live in today and throughout the past. This culture in the United States has a rich history dating before the colonial times. Guns became the back bone of America in the sense of survival. In a sense, this gun culture is as American as apple pie. There are roughly three-hundred million civilian guns round in the US, or about one for every person. Thus making the gun-control culture, long and rich in history with in the United Sates. But even with guns being so historical there still seem to be two different prospective on the topic of guns and guns on college campuses. This first group is called "MoreGuns," they are focused on increasing the number of people with the correct training and have receives their conceal weapons permit. Which "MoreGuns" thinks individuals should be able to carry their firearms on university campuses and tends to talk about the Second Amendment rights as an American citizens. The Second Amendment declares that American citizens have the right to bear arms. Which "MoreGuns" thinks that implies everywhere and anywhere. In contrast, "BanGuns" is a group that is anti-gun and wants universities to become gun free zones. "BanGuns" primary goal is to ban all guns from college campuses. Claiming that have more guns on campus can cause more violence and harm to students. 

Gun policy in the United States and Canada are very different with on the styles of gun control between these two countries. These two countries have totally difference restrictions on guns and gun control than each other. It is claimed that the United States lacks in reaction to gun violence where Canada leans with a much more strict approach. Canada position on guns is more towards anti-gun in regard, they make it harder for citizens to enquire a firearm. It is crazy to think how the United States wants to be the leader of the free world, but slowly want to improve their systems or policies they have put in place to better themselves. Instead of the United States fixing the problem at hand, they wait for something really bad too happened in order to fix the problem in the first place. An example of this is the unfortunate terrorist attack again the United States know as September 11, 2001. The United States failed to provide the right security measure to protect their citizens. Where in Canada when the Virginia Tech shooting accord in the United States the Canada government change there policies and revised their gun laws to make it hard for the corrupt people to gain access to guns. After these changes where made around 49 % of Canadian officials wanted to change more restrictions for some firearms and for Americans, the US was somewhere around mid to low 30 % range. Seeming as if there was not even a problem. 

In today society terrorism is something that is seen every day on the news foreign and domestic. This is another reason why citizens should be able carry a concealed weapon with permit on their person at all times if choosing to. Especially if they are live or working in a place with a large population, such as universities and major cities. Anti-gun personnel say that that is what the police are for but that raise the question on where were the police when the Virginia Tech shooting took place leaving thirty-three dead. Not putting a bad view on the police but the police cannot be everywhere at one time. Why not try and help the police by allowing guns on college campuses and maybe preventing a future attack or stopping an attack as it is happening. 

A problem with these college universities and their elected official's is that the universities blame all the bad things that have happened throughout history that it was the guns fault and not the individuals. So instead of penalizing the person or correcting a potential issue. The gun itself takes the wrap for it and is looking down upon as a threat. When is all about someone who broke the rules and felt through the cracks of the system. Again another reason why higher policies need to be put into place to better the safety these defenseless student, faculty and works. Something citizens need to understand is that gun-rights advocates argue all the time that increasing the number of guns restrictions could enhance both individual security as well as collective security on university campuses. That may be able to deter violence from the college universities. But with this come a large majority of college administrators, law enforcement personnel and student are opposed to this because they think that allowing concealed weapons on university campuses will pose an increasing risks for student and faculty. They also think that gun on college campuses will not deter future attacks and will lead to confusion during emergency situations.

There is a similarity between each of these sides and that is that each side has valid points to their thoughts about guns and gun control on college campuses. "MoreGuns" is saying that students and faculty might be able to prevent future attacks through self-defense by allowing guns on campus. On the other hand "BanGuns"is trying to keep firearms out of college campuses. "BanGuns" position is that if there are more guns on college campuses then the crime rate may rise and possibly make college campuses unsafe for the students and faculty. But these college institutions need to compromise with their student and faculty and meat them in the somewhere in the middle. A solution to this problem is perhaps during the day only faculty are allowed to have firearms in the class room. Maybe student are only allowed to carry them in buildings that allow these firearms within them. The buildings that want to remain gun free zone on campus have the choice too. For the students, faculty, and workforce wishes to bring their concealed firearm with permit on campus must leave it in their vehicles in a secure lock box if not permitted to bring into the university building. But these rules only apply throughout the day. At night these rules should be lifted to a different area of rules because as the sun falls, the crime rate increases leaving students more susceptible to attacks. Especially to the student that walk long distances home or are in parking garages.

The university need to put a cap on how late this university classes are able to go until. So that the risk of the night time scenery and night classes do not conflict themselves. Most of the university classes run until the late hours around 10:30 p.m. to 11p.m. making these two styles of life clash together, causing the likely hood of potential crimes to increase. A primary example was already mentioned is the Amanda Collins Testimony, she was raped at night walking from you University classroom in a parking garage. Her testimony uses a first person experience to advocate why she feel that  guns on college campuses should be allowed. Her immediate involvement with this extremely controversial topic. Collins testimony is rich in personal experience and is backed by scientific research. 

To conclude all this information on allowing guns on university campuses and putting the guns on the right hands for safety.There are two different argument that will be forever and more be controversial to the way the United State Carries out their future. Each side arguing two valid points that's contradict one another. All of the information that's has been provided can be backed by evidence. A statement that keep coming to mind is form the article "Ready, Fire, Aim the College Campus Gun Fight" where it explains in a couple short statement for both sides of the critical argument.

"MoreGuns and BanGuns groups are entrenched in their position because each processes information to promote different goals. MoreGuns advocates view data and arguments through the lens of legal values; BanGuns proponents do the same through the lens of academic values."

As students and faculty members to these university. There need to be a compromise with these officials and reform these policies to better the overall outcome of these students lives and does not deprive a citizen from the constructional rights. Where doing This may help decrease violence on college campuses, knowing someone might be packing heat. Now this idea of bring concealed weapons with permits on university campuses is not to get rid of the police nor make students or faculty take a part in police activity. Allowing guns on college campuses is to simply allow citizens to protect their individual safety as well as prevent another tragic events such as the Virginia Tech shooting.  This is a critical argument in America right now do to all of the violent crimes and political drama with police officers and the presidential election come up soon, But there is not a right or wrong side to the debate because both sides have great deals of evidence to back up their actions. 

