Exclusive: More Businesses Tell Gun Owners To Leave Guns At Home
By: Joshua Cook Jun 6, 2014
Sonic and Chili’s add themselves to the list of businesses who ask patrons to leave your gun at home.
According to Forbes, gun rights activists walked into a San Antonio Sonic and Chili’s with long rifles strapped to their backs, which caused corporate to release statements:
From Sonic: “Sonic and our franchise owners work hard to provide an inviting environment for customers and employees alike. While we historically have relied upon local laws to guide how we address the display of guns at drive-ins, recent actions required we carefully reconsider this approach. We’ve considered the views and desires of our customers and employees that staff the drive-ins across the country. Accordingly, we’re asking that customers refrain from bringing guns onto our patios or into our indoor dining areas. With respect to the storage of guns in vehicles, we ask that our customers continue to honor local laws.”
From Chili’s parent company Brinker International: “At Chili’s Grill & Bar, our passion is making our guests feel special in an environment where they can focus on family and friends over a great meal. Recent open carry events at our restaurants and others have prompted passionate and diverse feedback. We recognize that the open carry of firearms in restaurants creates an uncomfortable atmosphere and is not permitted under many local liquor laws. So, we kindly ask that guests refrain from openly carrying firearms into our restaurants and we will continue to follow state and local laws on this issue.”
Sonic and Chili’s join Chipotle, Starbucks and Jack In The Box, who all have clear policies that violate customer’s 2nd Amendment rights.
Target Targeted by Gun-Control Activists
According to the LA Times, Minneapolis-based retailer Target is being asked to not allow open carry inside its big box stores.
A petition launched this week by Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America, a group created following the Newton, Conn., school shooting, has now garnered more than 10,000 signatures.
“Target is a central part of the lives of American moms,” said Shannon Watts, founder of Moms Demand Action. “We support the 2nd Amendment, but people walking through the aisles flaunting their loaded weapons … is unacceptable. How can we, or the store’s employees or law enforcement, possibly know if they are good guys or bad guys?”
Molly Snyder, a Target spokeswoman, said that “the safety and security of our guests and team members is our highest priority.” Snyder said stores follow state and federal laws regarding open carry. She pointed out that Target does not sell firearms or ammunition.
Target, a retailer who is still recovering after the large data breach last year, most likely can’t afford to alienate any of its customer base.
BenSwann.com reported that the NRA called Open Carry protesters “weird and certainly not a practical way to go normally about your business while preparing to defend yourself.”
BenSwann.com’s Joshua Cook asked the Public Relations Director for Open Carry Texas, Tov Henderson what he thought about the NRA’s statement.
Tov Henderson:“When I first read the blog post released by the NRA, condemning the open carry movement in Texas, I was completely taken back. As is the case with most gun owners, I’ve always seen the NRA as the vanguard of the 2nd Amendment. You grow up revering that organization for always being at the forefront in the fight to preserve and restore our gun rights.”
“I was in utter shock seeing the NRA take a step back, attacking us for legally exercising our natural rights that are protected by both the law, and the Texas and U.S. Constititutions. This is especially the case, as the article was critical of tactics that we no longer use.”
“Many weeks before the NRA’s negative statements on open carry, the four major open carry groups in Texas came together and decided, in a joint effort, to change the game plan in which we use to advance open carry legislation. So the criticism seemed out of place, and totally unnecessary.”
“When the NRA’s Chris Cox publicly disavowed their own blogger’s statements, and reaffirmed their support for our organizations, it definitely helped to restore my faith in them.”
“I certainly had a hard time believing that the NRA would condemn organizations that have pushed the open carry issue to the forefront. Prior to our open carry walks, open carry legislation wasn’t a priority in the legislature. Bills continued to get shot down in committee. It wasn’t until we, in the open carry movement, employed an nontraditional game plan, that Austin took notice.”
“It is reassuring to know that the NRA still supports open carry, and that they intend on continuing to exert their influence in helping us achieve the goal of getting open carry legislation passed in the state legislature.”
“I think the NRA also learned an important lesson: mistakes happen. We’ve made mistakes as well. No organization is perfect. As long as both of our organizations continue to learn from our mistakes, correct them, and grow as a result, 2015 provides great potential to achieve our mutually desired legislative goal of open carry handgun in the state of Texas.”
Joshua Cook: “Is your movement growing?”
Tov Henderson: “In just over a year, we’ve manage to grow to approximately 20,000 members, and our rate of growth continues to expand every single day. Just a few months ago, we were adding around 30 new members a day. As of today, the average daily addition of new members has skyrocketed to 250. Even with negative media attention from leftists media sources, it hasn’t hampered our growth in the least. We’re learning that more and more people are eager to get back to the original, intended definition of the 2nd Amendment.”
Joshua Cook: “What are you trying to accomplish?”
Tov Henderson: “In the state of Texas, we have a peculiar set of laws that allow for an individual to open carry a long gun or a pre-1899 black powder pistol, but not a handgun. In other words, it is perfect okay to sling an AR-15 over your should while you in public, but openly holstering a Glock would make you a criminal. Not only is the concept itself absurd, but it is especially so when you consider the fact that 44 other states already allow some form of open carry handgun.”
“Being that Texas has always held the reputation of being the most gun friendly state in the nation, it almost comical when you consider the reality of how far behind our state actually is on gun rights. Furthermore, we’re not asking for something that is alien, we’re asking for something that is actually the norm in the vast majority of states in this country. What’s the hold up?”
Joshua Cook: “Is your campaign successful?”
Tov Henderson: “We’ve had a great deal of success in our campaign to achieve open carry legislation in the state of Texas. We recently received something we never had before; a committee hearing in Austin that was especially created for us, and occurred as a direct result of what we do every week all across the state.”
“For the first time ever, open carry handgun is a serious topic, and that topic is receiving international attention.”
“Plus, everywhere we do our open carry walks, there is a vast outpouring of support from those we meet. Texans all across the state are showing their support, and looking forward to having the option of open carrying their handgun when they choose to do so.”
“Texans understand that the words, “shall not be infringed”, form a clear statement, and that the government has no Constitutional authority to limit our right to bear arms as we see fit. And we want the legal option to openly bear our handguns as is already clearly permitted by the 2nd Amendment.”
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Exclusive: More Businesses Tell Gun Owners To Leave Guns At Home
Joshua Cook
Fri, 06 Jun 2014 18:18:33 GMT