Business Insider: I am a Leftist, trans woman living in the rural South and a gun owner.

metal · Apr 19, 2021

Business Insider Opinion Piece:
I am a Leftist, trans woman living in the rural South and a gun owner. Biden's proposed gun control legislation will only help the far right.

https://www.businessinsider.com/biden-gun-control-help-far-right-trans-woman-rural-south-2021-4

Some quotes, read the full article though.

It was the Pulse nightclub shooting for me. I spent hours glued to the news, shaking with anger and fear. That hate crime sent plenty of people in search of more restrictive gun laws, but it sent me and an awful lot of others in the opposite direction. Over the next few years, I started going to shooting ranges more. I took a two-day concealed carry class. Now, like millions of Americans, I'm a gun owner. Importantly, I'm part of what looks like a demographic shift in gun ownership in the US.

Frankly, I believe that Biden's executive orders and proposed legislation will disproportionately affect marginalized groups, both in terms of enforcement and in terms of access to the tools of self-defense. Because the legislation does not understand the gun community, I also believe the proposed laws are a gift to the far-right's recruitment efforts.

I have always supposed that my safety is something I need to guarantee for myself — that no one else was going to do it for me. Since the people who hate people like me are famously well-armed, I determined I would be as well.

I'm not advocating for universal gun ownership. I don't believe an armed society is a polite society. I also recognize that for a lot of people — maybe even most people — gun ownership makes them less safe instead of more safe

But it's poverty, patriarchy, and racist policing that drives most gun violence, and those underlying issues are where change ought to be focused.

There's a slogan, albeit a cynical one, that people involved in mutual aid organizing use that resonates a lot with me: "We keep us safe."

There are people who want to hurt me for who I am, and I don't want to let them. My safety is my responsibility. Maybe it shouldn't be, in some perfect society, but we don't live in a perfect society. We live in the USA.

There has been a growing demographic shift in gun ownership over the last several years, accelerated over the last 4 years of the previous administration.

DrForester · Apr 19, 2021

Seems like she's just trying to argue that the bare minimum things Biden wants to do are an overreach, so she can fuck off.

Also, she complains about rules varying from state to state and being confusing, a national gun control system would help a lot with that. So she can fuck off again.

She offers no solutions of what she considers reasonable regulations, and seems content with the status quo, so she can fuck off yet again.

Kinthey · Apr 19, 2021

But it's poverty, patriarchy, and racist policing that drives most gun violence, and those underlying issues are where change ought to be focused.

Considering that there are other countries that have the same problems but considerably less gun violence I don't think this holds true.

Trey · Apr 19, 2021

Access to lethal force being defined as safety and protection is such a fundamentally American idea. Hard to see any of this changing without a complete subversion of the ideologies underpinning this society.

metal · Apr 19, 2021

DrForester said:
Seems like she's just trying to argue that the bare minimum things Biden wants to do are an overreach, so she can fuck off.

Also, she complains about rules varying from state to state and being confusing, a national gun control system would help a lot with that. So she can fuck off again.

She offers no solutions of what she considers reasonable regulations, and seems content with the status quo, so she can fuck off yet again.

I think her statements about the varying laws from state to state can be seen as an argument FOR a set of federal laws, as most on the left (and right) want. It's ridiculous that you can be commiting a felony just by crossing a state line.

The bare minimum is all Biden can do. He can't outlaw guns. The only thing he can do is make it inconvenient for regular gun owners. Even the most restrictive laws like those in California and New York don't have an impact on gun violence. At the end of the day, people can still buy guns as it's their constitutional right and as long as they can own them, they can use them to cause harm. Which is why gun owners on the left are fighting for systemic change.

DrForester · Apr 19, 2021

metal said:
Which is why gun owners on the left are fighting for systemic change.

The one in this article sure isn't.

Deleted member 3896 · Apr 19, 2021

But it's poverty, patriarchy, and racist policing that drives most gun violence

She lost me here.

GrantDaNasty · Apr 19, 2021

Despite being a strong proponent that disarmament is key, I´ve come to realise I got no issue with POC saying "well if these are for protection and self-defense, don't mind if I do".

What's sad about it is that if you're a POC with a gun, you're immediately guilty of something, but White with a gun is "defending constitutional rights" and that is something we can't change, more guns or not - it requires so many other systems to be reformed if not broken down completely.

BUNTING1243 · Apr 19, 2021

I've yet to be swayed by a leftist argument for gun ownership. At worst it seems like a carbon copy of the right's "the only thing that can stop a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a gun" argument.

I think people can like owning guns for cultural reasons and we should probably figure out some kind of way to respect it, but i don't think owning a gun should be some facet of productive leftist ideology

mAcOdIn · Apr 19, 2021

I mean, it will be a more effective tool for the far-right, she's right on that but in the US just having a Democrat in office puts millions of dollars into the NRA's pockets. But, realistically, Biden's proposed Executive Orders are big fat nothing burgers and Democrats' proposed legislation is dead on arrival so I don't really see it effecting many people at all to be honest.

So in the end I guess it becomes a gross political game of motivation. Biden wants to do something to make his people happy despite not being in a position able to do anything of substance so in the end I reckon the only true value of these moves will be whether or not it pleases his base enough to see him even touch the issue enough to get them to turn out in '22 and '24 and whether those numbers outpace the right's.

krazen · Apr 19, 2021

Ehh, on a deeper dive it's a bit more nuanced than I expected.
It's tough to say 'WELL GUNS KILL PEOPLE' when you're a part of a marginalized group where the cops...if they aren't trying to kill your themselves, literally don't care if you're dead. Like how many 'black trans woman killed by random man, cops shrug' stories do I need to read.

I also find this funny:

Frankly, I believe that Biden's executive orders and proposed legislation will disproportionately affect marginalized groups, both in terms of enforcement and in terms of access to the tools of self-defense.

For shits and giggles I asked my fiance to call her cousins in Texas to see about how they feel about their new permitless open carry they are flirting with in Texas and they said even with with permits you never see a minority walking visilbly with a gun anywhere like white people regularly do because cops.

This is bullshit tho

Because the legislation does not understand the gun community, I also believe the proposed laws are a gift to the far-right's recruitment efforts.

LOL@ understanding the gun community. I find this fascinating because it equates them all as the same where its not (some own guns out of misguided fearmonger, some for real danger, some because lets kill the blacks). And the 'it will help recruit the far right' is nonsense, they are there to kill minorities, not to carry guns. Last four years has been one big recruitment drive with gun reform laws off the table by the Trump admin

AlgusUnderdunk · Apr 19, 2021

Doomguy Fieri · Apr 19, 2021

I'm just one more idiot that reads too much left twitter, but I'm pretty convinced that wing of the coalition is ready to jettison gun control. It's simply doesn't make the DSA type list of priorities. In fact, there's a whole tanky contingent that is gun positive.

Deleted member 52442 · Apr 19, 2021

AlgusUnderdunk said:
This also feels like they're trying to hit as many perceived buzzwords as possible. "I am a leftist, progressive, trans, Black, gun violence victim, Asian, single-parent, veteran farmer. Plus actor."

What's my name? Scarlett Johansson, why do you ask?

DarthMasta · Apr 19, 2021

- Take away guns.
- Take away whatever it is that makes Americans more likely to want to shoot each other.
- Learn to live with it.

Pick one.

prophetvx · Apr 19, 2021

GrantDaNasty said:
Despite being a strong proponent that disarmament is key, I´ve come to realise I got no issue with POC saying "well if these are for protection and self-defense, don't mind if I do".

What's sad about it is that if you're a POC with a gun, you're immediately guilty of something, but White with a gun is "defending constitutional rights" and that is something we can't change, more guns or not - it requires so many other systems to be reformed if not broken down completely.

Unfortunately not having an issue with minorities arming themselves just contributes to the cycle.

America's biggest problem is the sheer volume of guns and willingness to actually use them. This puts every person in every interaction with law enforcement in a constant state of fear. Racism is obviously a major contributing factor but it also can't be overlooked that cops treat every interaction like there is a gun that can be drawn at any second and those who are interacting with them also know this.

A cop should not handle every interaction with a hand over their holster, yet because of a complete lack of training in de-escalation (cops have as little as 6 weeks training before being on the street whereas most countries are at least 6-12 months) and fear of the massive amount of guns, they are willing to draw and use it in an instant.

bdbdbd · Apr 19, 2021

There's already more than enough guns in this country for every adult american to have one, right? And yet still we haven't seen this "good guy with a gun" materialize at more than 1 or 2 mass shootings to shut things down any quicker. But hey, I guess keep arming up and maybe one day we'll finally cross that threshold where everyone is armed and nobody is the bad guy.

Pand · Apr 19, 2021

I think it's easy to understand why minorities would want to arm themselves in a country full of guns, but these further justifications fall flat when you look at other countries with similar white supremacy issues but significantly less gun violence.

Deleted member 60410 · Apr 19, 2021

Her argument is straight up "guns don't kill people, people kill people!"

Where have I heard that before...

mAcOdIn · Apr 19, 2021

bdbdbd said:
There's already more than enough guns in this country for every adult american to have one, right? And yet still we haven't seen this "good guy with a gun" materialize at more than 1 or 2 mass shootings to shut things down any quicker. But hey, I guess keep arming up and maybe one day we'll finally cross that threshold where everyone is armed and nobody is the bad guy.

Sure, but firearms are used by individuals to protect themselves at a much higher rate than they are to stop mass shootings. Obviously everyone's free to make up their on mind on whether that's worth it but we shouldn't pretend that defending yourself from a mass shooter is the only self-defense use of a gun.

Deleted member 3896 · Apr 19, 2021

Citan said:
Her argument is straight up "guns don't kill people, people kill people!"

Where have I heard that before...

Yup. Getting horseshoe theory vibes from her argument here.

N64Controller · Apr 19, 2021

Americans and their undying love for guns across the political spectrum will always weird me out. There always seems to be a "... but" everytime there's a shooting or any discussion about gun ownership.

Seems like everyone who owns a gun unironically think they're one of the few good guys with guns.

Jmdajr · Apr 19, 2021

GoemonTheNinja said:
Americans and their undying love for guns across the political spectrum will always weird me out. There always seems to be a "... but" everytime there's a shooting or any discussion about gun ownership.

Seems like everyone who owns a gun unironically think they're one of the few good guys with guns.

People underestimate the fragility of the human mind. At least for me the best interest is to not have them around.

Maybe I would feel differnet if my neighborhood was overflowing with gang violence or something.
But it's not the case.

Lozjam · Apr 19, 2021

It is a good point though. I mean, there is a huge laundry list of things that need to happen, before we should talk about gun control.

Our police system
Poverty
Universal Healthcare with proper mental health resources

Any one of these things, could drastically decrease gun violence. And like it or not, gun control takes an immense amount of political capital, and time. I would much rather that political capital and will be focused on the above things, then on gun control. Which really doesn't help anything but sends off and energizes the right.

I am extremely anti gun in person, and I believe that gun control measures should eventually put in place. But, America just isn't there yet, because we need to fix these systematic issues before people feel safe without guns.

bdbdbd · Apr 19, 2021

mAcOdIn said:
Sure, but firearms are used by individuals to protect themselves at a much higher rate than they are to stop mass shootings. Obviously everyone's free to make up their on mind on whether that's worth it but we shouldn't pretend that defending yourself from a mass shooter is the only self-defense use of a gun.

Fair point. I was just responding to the fact that her impetus for getting a gun was a mass shooting and that this seems to be increasingly the response to mass shootings; that rather than disarm the shooters we need everyone else to be arming up.

I mean, I thought the 2nd amendment was a right to choose to bear arms, else it isn't really a right at all if it's something I am forced into. Seems like there could be a legal argument to be made about our current interpretation...

mAcOdIn · Apr 19, 2021

GoemonTheNinja said:
Americans and their undying love for guns across the political spectrum will always weird me out. There always seems to be a "... but" everytime there's a shooting or any discussion about gun ownership.

Seems like everyone who owns a gun unironically think they're one of the few good guys with guns.

Well, most gun owners are unironically good guys with guns, if that wasn't the case we'd be living like Mad Max or some shit by now.

The only thing that sorta gives me hope with people on the left arming up is I get the sense that they would give them up if they were given something in return, so for each group that more or less translates to making them more safe to the point they don't think they need to arm themselves. I don't think there's anything you could give the gun owners on the right to curb their demand for guns.

bdbdbd said:
Fair point. I was just responding to the fact that her impetus for getting a gun was a mass shooting and that this seems to be increasingly the response to mass shootings; that rather than disarm the shooters we need everyone else to be arming up.

I mean, I thought the 2nd amendment was a right to choose to bear arms, else it isn't really a right at all if it's something I am forced into. Seems like there could be a legal argument to be made about our current interpretation...

I think it was less about the Pulse nightclub being a mass shooting and more about a group she's closely aligned with was specifically targeted by that shooting. Hits closer to home I imagine.

Ripcord · Apr 19, 2021

Woman who lives in active war zone fears for her life and arms herself. Shocker!

Arm up, train up, fight back.

Allietraa · Apr 19, 2021

hard to disagree with the piece tbh, the headline is terrible though but the writer really just highlights the dichotomy between rural and urban in America, someone living in the middle of a city saying "my gun is for my protection and for hunting, so I will never go hungry" sounds silly, someone who is 20-30min away from most people and maybe even longer away from any kind of assistance and actually surrounded by land to hunt is a bit more legitimate of a gun owner frankly

and even in an urban setting, its tough for me to look at a marginalized person who is done being a passive target of state sanctioned violence and go "well its kind of problematic that u want a gun :/" from my (relatively) safe perch

JustinBailey · Apr 19, 2021

fighting gunfire with gunfire. unfortunately, I think the truth is that she's right about the necessary reaction to insanity. prob not about Biden's laws though.

Trey · Apr 19, 2021

Mercury Fred said:
She lost me here.

They're right in the sense that those factors drive violence in general, it will simply become gun violence with the high proliferation of guns.

Schlorgan · Apr 19, 2021

This reads like a headline from the New York Times Pitchbot

DryCreek · Apr 19, 2021

while gun ownership is s easy and accessible in the US I would advocate for any minority to arm themselves. but gun ownership is wrong and the left should continue to try and restrict gun ownership as much as they can. just because the demographics of gun ownership are changing doesn't all of a sudden make US gun culture okay.

Thordinson · Apr 19, 2021

prophetvx said:
Unfortunately not having an issue with minorities arming themselves just contributes to the cycle.

America's biggest problem is the sheer volume of guns and willingness to actually use them. This puts every person in every interaction with law enforcement in a constant state of fear. Racism is obviously a major contributing factor but it also can't be overlooked that cops treat every interaction like there is a gun that can be drawn at any second and those who are interacting with them also know this.

A cop should not handle every interaction with a hand over their holster, yet because of a complete lack of training in de-escalation (cops have as little as 6 weeks training before being on the street whereas most countries are at least 6-12 months) and fear of the massive amount of guns, they are willing to draw and use it in an instant.

Cops do this far more with minorities. I've never interacted with a cop and he had his hand on his gun. I've seen some of the same officers approach my friends with a hand on their gun. The only difference being that I'm white and my friends are not.

Cops can suddenly remember how to de-escalate with white people and can take them in without murdering them. It ain't the training, friend.

nachum00 · Apr 19, 2021

GoemonTheNinja said:
Americans and their undying love for guns across the political spectrum will always weird me out. There always seems to be a "... but" everytime there's a shooting or any discussion about gun ownership.

Seems like everyone who owns a gun unironically think they're one of the few good guys with guns.

It's gross

bdbdbd · Apr 19, 2021

mAcOdIn said:
I think it was less about the Pulse nightclub being a mass shooting and more about a group she's closely aligned with was specifically targeted by that shooting. Hits closer to home I imagine.

Sure, but if it wasn't a mass shooting it probably wouldn't have got her attention in the first place. Her own rural circumstances and other smaller scale hate crimes were apparently insufficient to drive her to react this way.

Hollywood Duo · Apr 19, 2021

The only valid point is that gun control won't solve the racist policing problem.

Tbm24 · Apr 19, 2021

Most I'll say is the arguments for why gun control legislation shouldn't happen because gun nuts will just be more mad, will ALWAYS fall flat for me. Fuck guns.

excelsiorlef · Apr 19, 2021

Ripcord said:
Woman who lives in active war zone fears for her life and arms herself. Shocker!

Arm up, train up, fight back.

One Day More!

mAcOdIn · Apr 19, 2021

bdbdbd said:
Sure, but if it wasn't a mass shooting it probably wouldn't have got her attention in the first place. Her own rural circumstances and other smaller scale hate crimes were apparently insufficient to drive her to react this way.

I mean, sorta? There's a terrorist aspect to a mass shooting perpetrated towards a group as small as the LBTQ community. I mean, I get Orlando is big but how many gay hotspots are there? If that behavior became normalized it's a given you or someone you care about would be caught up in it. Even in my city, if you wanted to kill Americans or even just white Christian Americans the list of potential targets could fill a book, but if you wanted to target my city's gay community the list of targets would be like, 2, 3 if you waited for the gay pride parade. Do surely any action specifically targeting such a relatively small group of people is going to hit them harder than if they targeted just random people, or Americans or even white Americans.

I think people take everyday hate crimes into account all the time. There's probably lots of people who are in direct contact with scumbags that have felt the need or desire to arm themselves and we probably rarely hear about it because usually that type of 1 on 1 violence isn't crazy enough for national news but I'd also imagine that for some people in a marginalized group some of these incidents are telling them that even if they surround themselves with good people and avoid shit bags that there's so much hate that they may end up being targeted by strangers.

I am a Bird · Apr 19, 2021

There are some issues about the selective enforcement of gun laws. Police are more likely to use these laws to remove guns from people who do need protection rather then someone who doesn't need guns like an abusive spouce. But this is an issue more with the police then the law itself, but should be considered when crafting the law.

Crushed · Apr 19, 2021

AlgusUnderdunk said:
This also feels like they're trying to hit as many perceived buzzwords as possible. "I am a leftist, progressive, trans, Black, gun violence victim, Asian, single-parent, veteran farmer. Plus actor."

This is an extremely shitty thing to say.

Ripcord · Apr 19, 2021

Crushed said:
This is an extremely shitty thing to say.

Regressive takes like that one, or suggesting that this trans woman is fighting to maintain the status quo are a-okay in threads like these on Era.

AlgusUnderdunk · Apr 19, 2021

Crushed said:
This is an extremely shitty thing to say.

My apologies, but it does feel like all of the adjectives thrown into that headline were done so just to attempt to undercut any potential arguments against it.

Deleted member 2699 · Apr 19, 2021

AlgusUnderdunk said:
My apologies, but it does feel like all of the adjectives thrown into that headline were done so just to attempt to undercut any potential arguments against it.

It's a pretty gross response to a marginalized person who is fearful for their safety, but I guess liberals only care what we have to say when we agree with them.

LumberPanda · Apr 19, 2021

AlgusUnderdunk said:
This also feels like they're trying to hit as many perceived buzzwords as possible. "I am a leftist, progressive, trans, Black, gun violence victim, Asian, single-parent, veteran farmer. Plus actor."

GAF.gif

AlgusUnderdunk · Apr 19, 2021

Nexas said:
It's a pretty gross response to a marginalized person who is fearful for their safety, but I guess liberals only care what we have to say when we agree with them.

Fair enough, I retract my original statement.

hurlex · Apr 19, 2021

Pretty awesome that some on the left are taking up the "good guy with a gun" conservative talking point.

Ripcord · Apr 19, 2021

hurlex said:
Pretty awesome that some on the left are taking up the "good guy with a gun" conservative talking point.

Pretty awesome to suggest that people who have been subject to systemic slaughter for decades are now falling into conservative ideology rather than just desperately looking for anything that might help them to survive better in the face of ongoing societal inaction.

PeskyToaster · Apr 19, 2021

The problem is that this person, and many others, are buying guns based on feelings and emotions and not facts. The fact is that this gun will not make you safer, it will not save you, and it will most likely end up getting you or your family killed more so than anyone else.

Beer Monkey · Apr 19, 2021

Where I live (I'm literally talking about my neighborhood in which I physically reside), if somebody tells you they are a leftist they typically engage in a whole lot of both-sidesism and typically dislike democracy. Because of that I've stopped referring to myself as a leftist, even though my positions are well to the left of the Dem party.

In terms of nationally/internationally, I'm not sure where everybody stands on 'leftist/progressive/liberal/etc', it has become exhausting keeping up but I'm still wary.

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