Should Teachers Carry Guns in School?

It began with a tiny town in Texas. The school board in Harrold, TX, voted in 2007 to allow their teachers to carry concealed guns in school as a safety measure. The town was taking advantage of its location in one of only eight states that allow firearms in school as long as they have written authorization from the school.

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In the wake of the Sandy Hook shootings, lawmakers in several states are following suit, reports the Associated Press. The South Carolina state congress was presented with a similar bill within 20 hours of the Newtown shooting. Oklahoma reps are working on one too, along with other state legislatures. Michigan’s state congress passed a bill earlier this week, but it was vetoed by governor Rick Snyder.

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Teacher must receive crisis and hostage training in order to carry a gun, and may only use bullets that minimize the risk of injury from ricochet. Still, the movement is controversial. Ladd Everett of the Coalition to Stop Gun Violence, said of the movement: “You are going to put teachers, people teaching 6-year-olds in a school, and expect them to respond to an active-shooter situation?” South Carolina representative Bakari Sellers, an opponent of that state’s bill, said “It makes no sense, and it is idiotic.”

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What do you think? Would arming teachers make schools safer, or just more dangerous? Let us know in the comments.