{"id":91912,"date":"2021-06-28T00:05:56","date_gmt":"2021-06-28T04:05:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.thecollegefix.com\/?p=91912"},"modified":"2021-06-28T12:24:09","modified_gmt":"2021-06-28T16:24:09","slug":"professors-no-longer-want-to-talk-about-their-claims-that-armed-students-posed-a-danger-to-other-people-classroom-discussion","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thecollegefix.com\/professors-no-longer-want-to-talk-about-their-claims-that-armed-students-posed-a-danger-to-other-people-classroom-discussion\/","title":{"rendered":"Professors no longer want to talk about their claims that legally armed students pose a danger"},"content":{"rendered":"

UPDATED<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

Kansas de facto expanded campus carry, resurrecting past criticism of campus carry<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

Kansas Democratic Governor Laura Kelly recently vetoed<\/a> legislation<\/a> that would allow 18-year-olds to conceal carry guns and said \u201cmore guns on campus is neither safe nor effective.\u201d<\/p>\n

The legislature overrode<\/a> the veto so almost all students can legally conceal carry on campus this upcoming semester. Eighteen-year-olds can conceal carry in the state generally — they were already allowed to open carry.<\/p>\n

The concerns about safety on campus are similar to those made by Texas professors and academic associations in 2015 after the state expanded concealed carry<\/a> on campus.<\/p>\n

However, six year later, none of the opponents contacted by The College Fix<\/em> seemed willing to examine their past concerns, nor would they provide any research showing violence on campus linked to the legislation.<\/p>\n

None of those contacted would connect The Fix<\/em> to someone who had self-censored out of fear of a debate in class with an armed student, a concern raised in 2015. Nor would they provide research on violence on college campuses related to concealed carry.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are swamped right now and are going to have to pass on this one. Our position remain[s] the same,\u201d said Gwendolyn Bradley with the American Association of University Professors in an email to The College Fix<\/em>.<\/p>\n

The AAUP had said in a joint letter<\/a> with other academic groups that a \u201crigorous academic exchange of ideas may be chilled by the presence of weapons,\u201d in response to the Texas legislation.<\/p>\n

Bradley would not provide any specific examples of violence from armed students in the past six years nor would it connect us to any professors who had seen discussion \u201cchilled\u201d in the classroom.<\/p>\n

Other signers on the statement included the Association of American Colleges and Universities, the Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges as well as the American Federation of Teachers.<\/p>\n

David Tritelli, a spokesperson for the AACU, said he was \u201cunable to assist\u201d with The Fix<\/em> inquiry because his organization \u201cdoes not collect or track data related to such incidents.\u201d<\/p>\n

The American Federation of Teachers and Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges did not respond to The College Fix\u2019s<\/em> inquiries for actual incidents of violence or silenced discussion.<\/p>\n

Economist cited concerns about safety — but has never conducted research on guns<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

Economics Professor Daniel Hamermesh resigned from his position at University of Texas-Austin in 2015.<\/p>\n

\u201cWith a huge group of students,\u201d Hamermesh said<\/a>, \u201cmy perception is that the risk that a disgruntled student might bring a gun into the classroom and start shooting at me has been substantially enhanced by the concealed-carry law.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hamermesh, a labor economist, has never published any work relating to guns. Most of his research and teaching revolves around the use of time, work productivity and unemployment, according to a review of his curriculum vitae<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Nor does he have any plans to do so or even investigate the accuracy of his predictions.<\/p>\n

\u201cI’ve not seen any examples on this–but I haven’t looked\/inquired,\u201d Hamermesh told The Fix<\/em> when asked if he could point to any examples of students shooting inside a classroom.<\/p>\n

\u201cI have not and don’t plan to do research,\u201d on crime after the institution of campus carry, the professor said. He confirmed he has never conducted research on guns in general, either.<\/p>\n

\u201c[T]he issue of risk of low-probability events always remains, whether such an event has yet to have happened,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Departments opposed guns, too busy now to talk about it<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

Hamermesh’s former department at UT-Austin could not respond either to requests for specific examples of crime.<\/p>\n

Kevin Carney, an administrative manager for the economics department, said many of their professors were unavailable in a June 14 email, but said to try later in the month. Carney told\u00a0The Fix<\/em> on June 25 that he had shared the request, but did not specify with whom.<\/p>\n

The College Fix<\/em> tried to reach out to UT-Austin\u2019s History Department for comment on the Kansas bill, but did not receive a response.<\/p>\n

The department said in 2015 that there was \u201cno reasonable justification for permitting concealed guns to be taken into campus buildings\u201d and said \u201cthe possible presence of guns will undermine our ability to teach.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cStudents and faculty alike have told us that they will not be comfortable discussing controversial subjects if they think there might be a gun in the room,\u201d the 43 signers of the letter<\/a> said.<\/p>\n

Eilis Keely, an administrative assistant at UT-Austin, referred The Fix<\/em> to two professors, both in the English Department, but only one of them responded. The English department letter is no longer viewable<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Mia Carter wrote in an email that she was busy and \u201cnot available for interviewing.\u201d She did provide a link to a number of interviews and statements she and a colleague, Professor Lisa Moore, had made in the past several years.<\/p>\n

The pair, along with a third colleague, previously lost a lawsuit<\/a> against the concealed carry law.<\/p>\n

She told The Fix<\/em>, however, that she was aware of the legislation being introduced in Kansas and that it \u201cwould be introduced elsewhere.\u201d<\/p>\n

MORE<\/strong>: College student explains support for campus carry<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201c[Texas] is the engine for Second Amendment absolutism. The \u2018Constitutional Carry\u2019 bill from this year\u2019s [Texas] legislative session will also dreadfully bloom across the country,\u201d Carter told The College Fix<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Additionally, The College Fix<\/em> could not find any conducted studies or research by professors in the three listed departments regarding violence and concealed carry incidents on college campuses. All the chairs signed onto their departmental letters in 2015.<\/p>\n

History chair Daina Berry\u2019s personal website<\/a> did not list any letters directly related to gun violence on college campuses. Nor has Jason Abrevaya, the economics chair, published research on the topic either, according to his Google Scholar<\/a> page.<\/p>\n

“It remains the position of the UT Economics department that guns should not be permitted in classrooms or in other campus buildings,” Abrevaya told The Fix<\/em> in a June 28 email after publication of the article. “The lack of an incident (accidental or otherwise) since the legislation does not mean that it won\u2019t happen in the future.”<\/p>\n

\u201cPsychologists study the determinants of human behavior, including causes of, and responses to, violent behavior,\u201d the UT-Austin psychology department, led by Jennifer Beer, wrote in 2015<\/a>. But Beer herself has not studied \u201cviolent behavior\u201d related to guns, according to a review of her CV<\/a> and publications<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Ellen Spiro, a professor in a communications department at UT-Austin, said that guns would \u201cinterfere with students\u2019 free speech in the classroom,\u201d in 2015. Spiro did not respond back to The Fix\u2019s<\/em> email asking her if she had any evidence to back up her claim about campus carry legislation harming students\u2019 right to free speech.<\/p>\n

Concealed carry group said there\u2019s been \u2018little to no harm\u2019<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cCampus carry has been legal on hundreds of colleges in a dozen states for years with little to no resulting harms,\u201d David Burnett, the public relations director for Students for Concealed Carry, told The Fix<\/em> via email. \u201cColleges are uniquely vulnerable targets for criminals and mass shooters, and colleges have done nothing that would effectively prevent such tragedies.\u201d<\/p>\n

The group supported the legislation in Texas.<\/p>\n

Burnett said that the claims by gun control advocates that \u201clawfully-permitted carry\u201d on college campuses will chill free speech rests on \u201cthe delusion\u201d that states that \u201cgun-free signs actually stop people from carrying on campus.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe always encourage students to follow the laws and policies,\u201d Burnett said, \u201cbut if someone intends to harm a professor or classmate over a difference of opinion, it staggers the imagination to assume a no-guns-allowed sticker will thwart their crimes.\u201d<\/p>\n

MORE<\/strong>: No increase in violence following campus carry legalization<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

Editor’s note:<\/strong>\u00a0The article has been updated with a comment from Professor Abrevaya.<\/em><\/p>\n

IMAGE: Michael Tefft\/ flickr<\/p>\n

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