Gun Free Zones – Addressing Hypocrisy

Would you place a sign in your front yard announcing, “There are no guns in our home” or “This home is proudly gun free”?  What if you owned a business, would you post a sign, “Don’t worry, you are safe here, we don’t allow guns.”  Of course not, unless you are insane or liberal.  Well, not quite.  Seems liberal anti-gun activists are a bit hypocritical when it comes to their own safety or that of their families.

Last year, organizing as Citizens Against Senseless Violence, conservative journalist James O’Keefe’s Project Veritas had his journalists go door-to-door in New York, New Jersey and Washington, D.C. to see which outspoken champions for Gun Control would be willing to declare their own home as a “Gun Free Zone” by placing a sign on their lawn.  If you anticipated that none of champions for Gun Control would allow their homes to be claimed a Gun Free Zone, you are correct.  When faced with the dilemma to declare their own homes as Gun Free—the very ones willing to put the lives and safety of gun owners at risk by publishing their names and addresses publicly, there were no takers.

For businesses, it’s often a matter of misconception, misinformation or personal beliefs transferred to company policy—that is 1) posting a sign stating Gun Free Zone or No Firearms Allowed will keep dangerous guns and therefore deadly violence out of their establishments and 2) that their patrons will feel at ease, secure and have the warm fuzzy feeling of [family] safety.

Unfortunately, altering the mindset of these business owners by quoting rights, cases or examples, well, you might as well watch paint rust.  And vowing not to be a patron—it’s a personal statement but without quantity, it’s of little monetary impact.   That in mind, we did recently find a successful approach in Loudoun.

The Dulles Virginia Greene Turtle’s owner, from Maryland, and posting No Guns Allowed signs, listened to reason when we offered this logic–posting the no guns allowed sign projects a false sense security, that the Greene Turtle is a safe haven, free from crime.  Moreover, it projects an overall guarantee for the safety of its patrons.  And, since it’s not a safe haven, free from crime and they cannot guarantee safety—attempting to promote the business as such creates liability if an incident occurs.  The approach was in much greater detail and I added a James O’Keefe type sign for his home, but ultimately the policy was changed and in fact, gun rights group Virginia Citizen’s Defense League (VCDL) has been invited to hold their membership meeting at the Dulles Greene Turtle on August 15th, 2013 https://www.facebook.com/events/181937561984447/.

Change can be made.