pro gun article in college paper.
While we may associate gun supporters with angry white men in leather jackets and gun control supporters with hippies and peace signs, these stereotypes are only a product of recent times. Throughout American history, gun control proponents were the powerful and the racist, not liberals and peaceniks.
Recognizing the roots of gun control advocacy the intentional disarming of a marginalized population and selective enforcement of gun legislation means opening up a new case against gun control, one based on the systemic discrimination that inevitably comes with arms legislation. The conservative and libertarian case against gun control is a matter of individual liberty. But after recognizing that gun control is consistently used to discriminate against minorities, theres a case to be made that progressives, too, should be wary of gun control: Its hypocritical that progressives champion equality while supporting gun laws with consistently discriminatory enforcement.
Lets look at contemporary gun control. Stop-and-frisk originated as a Supreme Court interpretation of gun control policy, not drug control policy. Its no surprise, then, that 9 out of 10 of those stopped were Black or Latinx. And there is still extremely selective enforcement of gun control laws. In 2015, 47.5 percent of those convicted of firearms charges were Black. This sentencing disparity is especially important because the average firearms sentence in 2014 was a hefty six years. If we consider the resource-heavy sting operations that the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives conducts these stings being the most advanced and militarized form of gun control it is telling that over 90 percent of those arrested are ethnic minorities.
Josh's solutions are youthful naivety, but his basic premise is historically correct. The bolded reminds me of Bloomberg, and
Trump before he decided to run. To be honest, I think that is still largely the case. Pet peeve, the writer uses "progressive" and "liberal" as synonymous. There was a time when they were, but not today.
http://oberlinreview.org/10751/opinions/progressives-should-oppose-gun-control/
For those who think Oberlin is something like the places founded by Oral Roberts or Jerry Falwell
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oberlin_College#Campus_culture
https://home.oberlin.edu/