NRA Calls for Armed Officers in All Schools
Saying the only thing that will stop a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a gun, National Rifle Association CEO Wayne LaPierre called for armed officers in all schools Friday during a press conference at the organization’s headquarters.
LaPierre was speaking in response to calls for stricter gun control following last week’s Sandy Hook Elementary School mass shooting in Newtown, Conn.
After saying that the NRA joins the nation in its grief over the Sandy Hook tragedy, LaPierre chided America for taking better care of money in banks than it does school children. “Banks have armed guards” but school children are left “utterly defenseless” because of “gun free zone” laws, he said.
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LaPierre argued that because schools have no protection, they are ripe targets for active shooters. “The next Adam Lanza is planning his attack now,” LaPierre said.
In addition to calling for Congress to find the money for armed officers in all schools by the time school resumes in January, LaPierre slammed the media, including video game companies, for perpetuating a culture of violence. He also called for TV entertainment companies to stop promoting gun control through their news arms while immersing children in violent acts through TV and movies. “They have the nerve to call it ‘entertainment,’ but it is the filthiest form of pornography,” he said.
The NRA is also establishing a new initiative to help schools improve their security. LaPierre said the School Shield program will be headed by former congressman Asa Hutchinson who also served as director of the DEA.
The School Shield program will be developed by some of the world’s foremost experts on school security, and it will include armed security, building design, access control, and faculty and student emergency training. Hutchinson said each community will be allowed to tailor the program to meet its needs.
LaPierre said there is a large pool of trained and qualified professionals that could be used to provide armed security for schools. He specifically mentioned retired law enforcement officers, retired military, and retired rescue workers. He also said that the NRA through its police programs would help train school security personnel.
The press conference was interrupted twice by protesters calling for stricter gun control.
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