Arming Teachers Should Be Taken Off The Table

*The following article does not necessarily reflect the views of the newspaper or Homer High School*

While the names and lives of the victims of the Parkland shooting must never be forgotten, some of the ideas to prevent another similar tragedy should be. One of those ideas includes the possibility of arming school personnel.

The concept of arming teachers gained national prominence on Wednesday, February 21st, during President Trump’s emotional listening session with the grieving Parkland families. During one segment, President Trump asked the room for solutions that they wished to see implemented. One father suggested, “...if a tragedy strikes, can we wait for first responders to get to the campus four or five or six or seven minutes later? And one possible solution, which may not be very popular, would be to have people in the school (teachers, administrators) who have volunteered to have a firearm safely locked in the classroom and given training throughout the year…” President Trump seemed to like this idea, as he brought it up again mere minutes later.

Unbeknownst to many people, there are certain states where teachers are already permitted to carry concealed handguns on a voluntary basis. In Ohio, for example, school boards can grant permission to certain employees to carry firearms. It is strictly voluntary with no salary increase. Volunteers are given strict training and usually have some prior experience. (Educators Fear and Embrace Calls for Concealed Carry in the Classroom)

On the surface, this may seem like a swift response to a horrific problem. After all, in a school shooting, waiting for law enforcement wastes several precious minutes and puts more lives at risk. An armed teacher could solve this issue.

Here is the problem: a handgun against an assault rifle is not a fair fight. How can we expect a teacher with a handgun to overcome a shooter with a semiautomatic weapon? Not only is this irrational, it may also cause another unnecessary tragedy.

Teachers are human, just like the rest of us. They have incredibly full daytime jobs, tasked with instructing their students and helping them to pass exams. Especially with the changes to the American educational system in the past decade, teachers have even more on their plate. From special education teachers to guidance counselors to classroom instructors, they already face tremendous challenges. Now President Trump seems to support turning them into lifeguards as well.

Public school classrooms are one of the last places on Earth where multides of students from different races, ethnicities, and religions can come together in peace. Teachers are facilitators of tolerance and agents of social progress. In my opinion, the best teachers exemplify these qualities. If we allow guns into classrooms, how does this change the message we spread to young people? We would be promoting a culture of violence and aggression. Speaking as a student in an American public high school, this is unacceptable. It is also downright uncomfortable.

It comes as no shock that President Trump is in favor of arming teachers. After all, the NRA was one of his largest campaign donors, providing him with $30 million for his war chest. It wields enormous control over the Republican Party, donating over $54 million to conservative candidates in the 2016 elections. As the Republicans control the executive and legislative branches, the NRA dominates both. The group claims to crusade against a liberal-backed plot to destroy the 2nd Amendment.

We could devise solutions that would be just as efficient, more cost-effective, and less controversial. We could invest into our police departments and mental health facilities. We could distribute more security officers to public schools. We could install metal detectors in school entrances. If we want radical solutions, we could even introduce a ban on assault weapons throughout the United States.

In essence, the proposal to provide public school teachers, custodians, counselors, cafeteria workers, and administrators with firearms is dangerous. It is an NRA plot to inject the American electoral system with big corporate money.

This idea cannot be treated as mainstream. Our public schools are too precious to taint with more guns. Teachers do not deserve to have the additional responsibility heaped on them. And our electoral system is fragile enough without allowing the NRA an even tighter grip. The idea of arming teachers must be taken off the table.