Newly minted Detroit police chief James Craig, offered a rallying cry for citizens of the Motor City, “arm yourselves and criminals will think twice about attacking you.” Craig stated, “when we look at the good community members who have concealed weapons permits,” he said, “the likelihood they’ll shoot is based on a lack of confidence in this Police Department.”
This comes on the heels of the gun control debate raging and the abject squalid conditions in Detroit. Detroit has unfortunately had lots of violence in the city and the bankruptcy of the city, isn’t helping. So with all the ills currently ailing the city, the Chief chose to stand on this issue.
He went on to state “coming from California, where it takes an act of Congress to get a concealed weapon permit, I got to Maine, where they give out lots of [carrying concealed weapon permits, or CCWs], and I had a stack of CCW permits I was denying; that was my orientation,” he said. “I changed my orientation real quick. Maine is one of the safest places in America. Clearly, suspects knew that good Americans were armed.”
Robyn Thomas, Director of the Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence disagreed with Craig’s stand.
“I think at its core, his position is an emotional one, based on the idea that people feel safer when they have guns. But studies have shown more guns don’t deter crime,” Thomas told the News. “There’s no research that shows guns make anyone safer, and it does show that, the more guns in any situation, the higher the likelihood of them harming either the owner, or people who have access to them.”
I will add that in Dearborn Heights, which is right outside Detroit, Renisha McBride, was shot in the face by a home owner, who I’m sure expresses the same sentiments that Craig regards. The call by Craig invokes fear into the residents there, and ultimately endangers innocent African Americans in Detroit who will be the victims of the crusade by the Chief. Perhaps a more productive effort by the city to recover and grow, would lower crime, instead of scare gun owners into being trigger happy.
Sourceblackvibes.com