Colleges deserve protection from guns

This past Thursday, the Supreme Court turned heads and incited strong reactions, both positive and negative, when it overturned the District of Columbia’s ban on the individual possession of handguns.

The ruling puts the safety of colleges and universities into question. Justice Antonin Scalia made “sensitive places such as schools and government buildings” the exception to the rule. However, the differing definitions of schools may put college campuses in danger. After the shootings at Virginia Tech, Northern Illinois and Louisiana Technical College, these institutions are obviously in need of the same protection afforded to elementary and secondary schools.

If even government buildings can be termed “sensitive” places, why should there be a distinction made between types of schools? College students may be capable of making more complicated decisions than younger pupils but both types have the same goal: to learn.

In a country that puts so much emphasis on higher education and where such a large portion of the population attends some form of college or university, students should be able to learn without having to be afraid about the presence of guns on campus.