FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 18, 2025
(North Salem, NY): Following on the heels of yesterday’s horrific mass shooting at Florida State University, The Campaign to Keep Guns Off Campus shares today Exhibit A from North Carolina as to why the flow, availability and access of firearms on campuses, particularly in sensitive zones such as dormitories, is poor policy and generally a bad idea. Thus, expansion of firearms on campus in bills such as NC HB 193 call for serious opposition today.
In the past week a Winston-Salem State University student shot a visiting alum nine times on April 11 in the study lounge of a dormitory. Tranquil residential halls and calm study lounges are the last places students should be concerned about in terms of aggressive crime, violent adolescent disputes and severe outcomes related to the firing of guns. Too often this has become the norm resulting in not just injuries and deaths but the complete souring and spoil of the study environment. Far beyond the statistics and arrests is the collective trauma experienced by the academic community writ large. This is not the first time such violence has visited WSSU. A recent shooting created a similar result, the running for shelter-in-place, shutting down of university classes and activities and the subsequent, harsher security responses turning the climate into one of heightened surveillance and limited public visits. Those seeking and expecting the time-honored tranquility, inspiration and stimulation of university life should not have to live like this.
The day before, on April 10 at North Carolina Central University, a 22-year-old man was arrested brandishing a rifle and Glock firearm. NCCU is no stranger to the menace of gun violence. During homecoming week last fall a man shot and injured four people, including a student, near the Student Services Building and an assistant professor was arrested for firing a revolver near a residence hall.
“I saw people scattering, so me and my friends, we decided to go out and try to get some distance on what was going on,” sophomore Kennith Reddish described.
Freshman Hailey Johnson detailed how gunfire marred campus pride. “Calling all of your friends, being concerned, making sure everyone’s alright,” Johnson said. “It sucks that someone had to ruin a first-year experience.” In this case, the facts are particularly disappointing being that an armed teacher contributed to the ruin.
The North Carolina legislature needs to listen to voices such as Hailey who are witnessing their college experience being ruined. House Bill 193 (and Senate Bill 280) would greatly expand the number of individuals who can carry firearms on private school grounds, the latest in a growing list of gun proposals this session in the state. The North Carolina House Judiciary 2 Committee approved HB 193 a few weeks ago where it now is before the House Education K-12 Committee for further debate. HB 193 authorizes those with a valid concealed handgun permit (along with those who are exempt from the requirement to have a permit) to possess or carry a handgun on educational property owned, used or operated by a private school, according to the bill’s text. The legislation’s impact could expand if either of two pending bills authorizing so-called “constitutional carry” – SB 50 or HB 5 – were to be enacted into law. These bills would allow individuals 18 or older to carry concealed handguns without obtaining a permit, a deviation from current law. SB 50 has passed through the upper chamber and is now in the House, while HB 5 awaits another committee hearing in its original chamber.
Rep. Deb Butler (D-New Hanover) points out that polling shows the vast majority of North Carolina teachers do not favor guns in schools. “This bill endangers students, it endangers teachers and people don’t want it,” she said. “You’re telling the teachers in North Carolina that we don’t really care what you say.”
The state’s educational and healthcare leadership is bracing for more to come given its challenges. According to North Carolinians Against Gun Violence, 2 in 5 North Carolinians own a firearm – including 1 in 3 parents – and over 1 in 4 of those parents’ firearms are unsecured. Gun deaths are a crisis for North Carolina kids. The death rate for the state’s children and teens more than doubled from 2019-21. Among North Carolina youth, 50-percent of suicides and 80-percent of homicides involve a firearm.
While we applaud Winston-Salem State University’s rapid response in securing its campus we will never accept the normalcy or positive light that is customarily shed in the aftermath. The university’s formal response is understood and appreciated but does it meet the larger moment? “We are actively reviewing safety protocols and increasing security presence to further protect our campus … Winston-Salem State University is stronger than any one incident.”
Perhaps, but what is the strength when one incident turns to two, three or four? Additional access to guns on campus creates risks where students and non-authorized personnel can brandish such weapons leading to more violence and unintentional shootings. Being stronger is one thing. But college life plus guns does not add up to the peace, purpose and potential of a happy college life. As freshman Hailey sums up, it is something else altogether. It sucks.
Founded in 2008, The Campaign to Keep Guns Off Campus works with K-12 schools, colleges and universities across the country to oppose legislative policies that would force loaded, concealed guns to be carried on campuses. Through education, outreach, coalition-building, and legal action, The Campaign works to foster a safe learning environment for all and is the only national organization of its kind tasked with protecting higher educational institutions and the communities they serve. Follow us on Facebook, BlueSky, X and Instagram.
Contact: John McKenna, Executive Director, The Campaign to Keep Guns Off Campus ([email protected])
