The right to bear arms is granted to all Americans by way of the Bill of Rights in the United States Constitution. It is an integral piece of the Second Amendment. This privilege gives any U.S. citizen the permission to protect himself, his property and his family. Recently, this right has been challenged on many levels. Some politicians seem to be on a ferocious quest to de-arm the legally carrying people of this country. You can hear many of them go on tirades about gun control. To own a firearm, you have to pass a background check, cannot be a convicted felon and, in some states, must take a class on and complete firearm training. These are all very good checks and processes that I totally support their need to be met prior to purchasing a weapon.

Rarely are the guns used in criminal acts legally bought and obtained. A study conducted in Chicago (a city of high crime with a 72 percent murder rate according to USA Today April 2016) found that most criminals using firearms in their crimes were attained through social networks and friends. Another examination in a similar city found that 80 percent of people illegally carrying a gun were prior felons or somehow prohibited from being in possession of a firearm. It also discovered that, at the minimum, 30 percent were stolen. Clearly, and the evidence goes on and on, the individuals using guns to commit crimes did not get them by using the proper and legal methods.

So, why then, should the honest, non-criminal citizen not be allowed to own and carry a gun using the proper means of attainment? The answer is they should be and, thankfully, no politician or gun control group has been able to repeal the Second Amendment. If, as the law provides, the right to bear arms is granted to appropriately vetted citizenries, then why are we limited as to where we can or cannot carry said weapons? Do crimes only occur in certain places? Do criminals only strike homes, businesses or mall parking lots? I think not. Crime can happen anytime anywhere. In the last few years, we have seen an alarming rate of school shootings from elementary schools to college campuses. You may recall such events that happened at Virginia Tech in 2007. This insane person went into classrooms and began killing people at random. Save a few university and college campuses, most institutions do not allow students or staff to carry a concealed weapon. So I pose the question- what if one of the now dead students or staff would have had a gun on that fateful morning? Could they have fired back and stopped this senseless act? I would bet this disturbed killer could have been rendered ineffective and thus countless lives could have been saved that day.

I wish The University of Alabama felt the same. I think with the recent crimes committed on our campus, especially crimes such as rape and robbery, the campus can qualify as being unsafe at times. According to collegefactual.com, “The University of Alabama earns an overall crime rating of C when we compare reported on-campus, city, and regional crime against all other schools nationwide.” You can view other alarming crime stats on their site to further this point.

I feel that, given the turbulent times and crime rates, students that have properly obtained a carry permit through the state of Alabama should be able to carry a weapon on campus with them at any time. That said, I do think that mandatory firearm training should also be required before any person is allowed to possess a weapon. I received training from the U.S. Army and have experience with weapons, but I would gladly attend any required classes in order to be able to carry on campus. I am even for a further vetting system determined by UA Police to ensure that persons wishing to carry and fulfill their Second Amendment rights are entirely qualified to do so.

The state of Texas recently passed a law permitting students and staff to carry a weapon while on campus. Texas has the mandatory background checks and training classes that must be completed before anyone is granted a permit. Perhaps Alabama and the University could follow suit. It is too early to have seen any results of crime prevention or a stoppage of an in-progress crime by a person carrying there, but maybe that silence thus far is deafening in itself. We may never know when a criminal trying to rob a student on a campus in Texas deems it too risky because they themselves could be seriously injured for trying to commit a crime against an armed person.

I am not advocating for a return to the days of the Wild West, or for every person at the University to wield guns all over campus, but I am in favor of being able to exercise my Second Amendment rights, protect myself and fellow students. In light of clowns roaming the woods near schools in the country, riots breaking out in multiple cities and students being robbed at gun point, I feel we have the right to be able to protect ourselves at all costs. If you can qualify, pass and legally acquire a firearm, then providing this defense for yourself and others is a security that could save lives.

Kale Jenkins is a graduate student studying nursing. His column runs biweekly.