I will lead off by saying that these concerns and conversations are reflective of a wide variety of perspectives that have been brought to me. These are not my concerns nor do I claim to speak for our entire campus, but they are the concerns of a large diverse population of student groups, faculty groups, and staff groups who gave statements, both in person and through email to me. I have many roles on our campus, but here today, I am nothing more than a representative of many of those on campus who wish their concerns to be heard.
The conversation regarding concealed carry at the University of Wyoming is a difficult one. While the administration has made it clear that their orders to carry out a draft rule that would permit concealed-carry in select campus facilities is coming from the legislature and by proxy the people of Wyoming, many students, faculty, and staff do not feel represented. This brings us to the concerns brought to me.
For many of those students who support campus carry, with there being an allowance for only those 21 and over to have concealed carry permits, most students who are under 21 are put at a disadvantage in a conflict with those who are over 21.
Another two concerns that go hand in hand are that of permits and that of controversial events. Events similar to the controversial student-group ones held last year have been known to incite violence on campus in some capacity. Allowing concealed carry at these events could exacerbate the chances and severity of this violence. This leads to the second concern of permits. UWPD is the only entity that can request to see a concealed-carry permit, and they are not public record. As such, many students will likely carry without a permit, because it is unlikely that anyone will check that they have a permit if they do not cause any trouble.
The largest point being made is a lack of tangible benefit. Many students, faculty, and staff have been provided an exceptional amount of statistics as to why concealed-carry is not bad, but few statistics as to who it benefits. It does not appear that anyone beyond the legislature and administration are truly pushing for concealed-carry on campus. For this reason, many students, faculty, and staff alike believe that the very fact that many students are reporting that passing this rule will make them feel less safe, is reason enough not to have concealed-carry: especially when it does not appear for many that allowing concealed-carry on campus is a decision that is being made for the benefit of students.
But at the end of the day I want to offer this as well. This should be a discussion, not a conflict. I encourage all of you present and all of you watching this to reach out, engage, and connect. Help bridge the divide between admin and our campus on this monumental issue. Only by working together constructively, and having civil dialogues, can we solve this issue in a meaningful fashion. I want to thank all of you on the board, all of admin, and all students, faculty, staff, and community members who have engaged with this process. Together, we are UW.
