By Will Wright | Assistant News Editor

wwright@kykernel.com

A group of UK students stood in the Student Center on Tuesday with empty gun holsters strapped around their waists.

Students for Concealed Carry held the demonstration outside Starbucks to promote the idea that those with concealed carry permits should be allowed to bear arms on campus.

“It’s not a protest in that we’re not screaming and yelling and holding up signs,” said Tyler Waide, Kentucky director of Students for Concealed Carry and president of the UK chapter. “But we want to bring attention to this issue so the legislature has to do something.”

Kentucky state law dictates that people can carry guns if they get a permit, a process that includes required background checks and a firearm accuracy test, according to the Kentucky State Police website.

But UK reserves the right to regulate where guns are allowed on campus.  According to UK’s policy on deadly weapons, a student who possesses a deadly weapon is “subject to disciplinary action” under the Code of Student Conduct.

“Numerous court cases have found that you have the right to have a gun,” said diplomacy graduate student and demonstrator Cassidy Henry. “(UK’s rule) infringes on my constitutional rights.”

Students for Concealed Carry’s goal is to pass a state law saying UK must respect the right of students with permits to carry guns on campus.

Henry said she understands that some people may think students carrying guns is dangerous, but much of that fear comes from not understanding the permit process.

“To most people, guns on campus are scary, but these are people that have been trained, have had background checks,” Henry said. “These are not the people you need to worry about.”

The open-holster demonstration was meant not only to promote a cause, but to educate students about the laws surrounding guns and the process people must go through to get a permit.

“We have so many people who aren’t informed enough to make an opinion,” communications sophomore and demonstrator Thomas Broussard said. “But we’re here to educate people so they can form an opinion.”

Though people must receive background checks to get a concealed carry permit, some think that having guns on campus would be dangerous.

“There’s no need for it,” engineering sophomore Alec Holman said. “The campus police do a good enough job.”

The idea that a classmate could have a gun tucked in their side could make some people feel uncomfortable, but biology junior Josh Barkley said having a separate permit to carry on campus may ease that tension.

“I’m all for the concealed carry idea, but I think that might make people feel uneasy,” Barkley said. “There should be a separate process to have (a gun) on campus.”