The debate on whether more security should be enforced in public school institutions rages on as school shootings are becoming almost commonplace.   Many believe that the presence of weaponry in schools will increase violence or instill fear in the students.  However, there are many  who are convinced that gun control will not solve the issue of school violence.

“Gun control does not prevent school shootings. Illinois has some of the tightest gun control laws in the country. Yet, they have the most shootings and murder-rates in the entire country,” says MODG senior, David M.

Elaine H., another MODG student near Chicago, agrees. “We have super strict laws and tons of gun violence. Shootings are so common that they aren’t always on the news because it’s the same thing all the time.  It’s time to try something else to stop this madness…”  She goes on to say that “the solution to safer schools is having guns in the schools.”

Armed teachers have been suggested by the president himself; however, as many teachers have little to no experience, or refuse to utilize weapons, the more realistic execution would be to have armed guards or policeman sent to schools in each district.  How many of these school shootings would have ensued had there been armed law enforcement or military present?  In several states, there are security guards, but they are prevented from carrying firearms or other weapons.

Two Cornell graduates, past public-school students, concurred that equipped security would have lessened their fears in oppose to the belief that such an appearance would instill anxiety and dread.  “They’re not the bad guys,” one said. “Knowing that they would protect me and my friends in case of an emergency would have made me more able to focus instead of always worrying about what would happen.” Another former public-school student said, “I’d say there’s too much gun phobia and not enough phobia of actual criminals.”

The majority of schools in the United States are “gun-free zones.”  This obviously has not prevented school violence.  It has the opposite effect: it makes these institutes targets, as the shooter is aware that each individual there is defenseless.  David H., a MODG junior, quotes:

Dear God,
Why do you allow all these shootings in schools?
Signed a concerned student.

Dear concerned student,
They don’t allow me in the schools to stop them.
Signed God.

Former cop and FBI negotiator, military veteran, and internationally recognized gun photographer (“Stickman”, Instagram @stickgunner), ‘Uncle’ A.* offered an entirely different viewpoint on the issues of school security and gun control.

When asked what the best way would be to prevent future school violence, he responded with:

“Dress code. I’m serious. It enforces discipline; forced integration with everyone else. It gets rid of the idea that you’re a bunch of individuals, and solidifies the idea that you’re all the same, there for a common purpose- education.  Button-down, tucked-in white shirt and black pants.  It sounds simplistic, but it’s true. Dress codes eliminate gang conduct, and the obvious purpose of not being able to hide weapons.  Teachers too! This way no one in the school is different…”

“Another advantage: anyone who doesn’t look like everyone else is an immediate red flag.  People ask me the solution, and I say this.  Dress code.  No backpacks, no jackets inside the building, all shirts always tucked in.  Ever hear about a shooting in a military school?  No, I bet you didn’t.  Two things: there are guns there, and everyone is the same. School violence can be prevented by uniformity and further by the obvious presence of guns.”

Increased physical security, and this new concept of uniformity, could potentially improve schools’ defense and protection, and drastically diminish school violence – possibly eradicating it altogether.

*Full name undisclosed for privacy.