As a concerned parent of two high school students, I support House Bill 564, a common-sense bill that would prohibit guns in schools, except in limited circumstances. Guns are dangerous, deadly weapons and generally have no place in schools. Schools are places for learning and guns are weapons of violence that are incompatible with learning.
Shockingly, New Hampshire is one of only three states that have not prohibited guns in schools. We need to do so because the current laws do not adequately protect our school communities. The federal Gun-Free School Zones Act has been interpreted as allowing people to bring handguns into schools simply because they have a voluntary state handgun license from a local police department. This is ridiculous, especially since a person can obtain a license in our state without receiving training in safely handling a gun.
Our priority needs to be keeping our children safe. Many schools have policies of going into lockdowns when someone brings a gun into the school, to try to ensure the safety of the students in the presence of a deadly weapon. It is outrageous to allow people to carry a gun into a school and force students and teachers to disrupt their classes and crouch on the floor of a darkened classroom in fear while the threat is evaluated.
Students and teachers do not want guns in schools. Please contact your state representatives and ask them to vote for HB 564.
CINDY WHITE
Hopkinton