The “Never Again” movement has been sweeping across the country this summer. The movement was started by students of Parkland, Florida, many of whom were present when a shooter opened fire at Stoneman Douglas High School. As the movement made its way into Texas however, it faced certain challenges within a state that is typically against tighter gun controls. However, the students and the movement also found some support, leading many to question what tighter gun laws would mean for those in Texas.
The movement’s main goal is to simply keep people talking about the possibility of tightening gun controls throughout the country. One measure suggested in Texas was to reverse the campus carry the state currently has, which allows students to carry concealed weapons on campus.
Those in the movement also suggested Texas adopt a red flag law, as many other states have. This law would allow family members and law enforcement officials to ask a court to collect firearms from any person deemed to be a danger to themselves or others.
Some state this is a violation of Second Amendment rights, and that taking firearms away from people would prevent them from protecting themselves, their family, and their property. Others claim that it is a slippery slope, and that when certain types of firearms become banned or can be taken away, others such as shotguns used for hunting, may be next on the list.
However, while there may be some negative implications that come with tighter gun control laws, there may be some positive ones as well. For example, if a red flag law was passed, people also would not be able to harm themselves if they are considering suicide. 80 percent of suicide attempts using a firearm are fatal. That is more than half the fatality rate of other suicide methods. Removing guns from a person wishing to harm themselves could potentially save many lives, as has been seen in other states across the country that do have red flag laws.
“Like any proposed law,” says Gary Medlin of The Medlin Law Firm, “there would clearly be negative and positive implications involved with tighter gun control laws. There is no real way to know what all of those would be until a law gets passed. For better or worse, Texas likely has a long way to go before that happens.”
