Executive Director Fergerson correctly stated, "People are allowed to lawfully carry." So kudos to her for knowing and being willing to follow state law.
She gave a reasonable-sounding argument for her disarmament request: "We don't believe that crowds, especially when there's drinking and celebrating, mix with a lot of guns so we'd like everybody to leave them at home." Notwithstanding guns have been lawfully carried at the festival for years with no issues.
The website also states, "We respectfully request that you leave your weapons, including firearms, at home."
Security is to be provided by unarmed volunteers, unarmed private security, and Atlanta Police (with help from other agencies).
So if no one is armed except police and bad guys, who will ignore any disarmament requests, is this the perfect picture of safety?
Let's think about this for a moment. What about folks traveling to and from the festival, whether in their vehicle, on MARTA, or on foot? Will festival security measures keep them safe while traveling? Will a gun left at home protect them while traveling? The Captain Obvious answer is NO to both.
And why the complete trust and reliance on the police? Does Atlanta Police have a stellar record in the Gay community? Anyone recall the 2009 Eagle Bar incident? Is all forgiven now? Don't get me wrong, most police are good people, but things don't always work out for the best when police and criminals are the only ones armed.
Why does Ms. Fergerson not trust gay people to be responsibly armed in the presence of alcohol and crowds? Is there an epidemic of gay folks drunkenly shooting into crowds? If not, then why the need for any such polite request?
Though I don't speak for GA2A in my article here, GA2A (formerly Georgia Carry) apparently trusts gay people to carry guns in festivals at Piedmont Park. In fact, for years they've had a booth there for the festival to give attendees information on their organization which fights for their right of armed self-protection.
And why shouldn't gays be armed? They are often victimized by criminals who beat, rape, rob, and murder them. It's high time that they get armed, trained, and prepared to defend themselves. And they should be armed for their safety even at festivals.
If a straight person such as myself can advocate for gays to be lawfully armed wherever they go, why can't the Executive Director of the Atlanta Pride Festival do the same?
The Black community also has a similar issue in that most Black leaders and politicians consistently side with White Democrats to push for gun bans in as many public areas as possible, as well as banning the possession of certain types of guns. Apparently, they don't trust Blacks to be responsibly armed either, in public places.
Perhaps both of these cases is an example of where the leadership doesn't speak for the majority makeup of the membership?
Are Blacks and Gays to be unarmed sheep because the police do such a great job protecting them?
According to straight, White Democrats, Gays and Blacks shouldn't be armed in public. Where do the elites even in these same demographics obtain the gall to demand that they disarm themselves and only trust the police for their safety? Cognitive Dissonance?
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