People tend to be afraid of things they don't know very much about. The proper way to deal with this is not to ban guns, but rather to educate. There is a stigma in regards to firearms on campus that is portrayed as an often fatal stereotype. The media places strong attention on negative aspects of firearm misuse and little attention on proper firearm use, such as for self-defense. A prime example is the tragedy that happened at Virginia Tech, when 32 students and faculty lost their lives.
There are two reasons to allow licensed carry on college campuses. The first is legal entitlement to self-defense. The second is reason is the actual need to use self-defense. Critics of Students for Concealed Carry on Campus (SCCC) often claim that college campuses are usually safer environments, therefore concealed carry and self-defense are unnecessary. Students for Concealed Carry on Campus has never disputed that colleges overall see less crime, because studies do indeed indicate that campuses overall have comparatively lower crime rates. It is logical to conclude that a campus typically populated by students, averaging 18-22 years of age, staff and faculty would be less inclined towards crime, and that if anything else, poor students make poor robbery targets.
It is not logical to compare select zones of a city street to national averages and declare them "safe" and therefore off limits to carry a concealed weapon. Crimes are committed in new locations every day. No one ever expected the quiet college in Blacksburg, Virginia to become the target of a psychopath’s killing spree. During the Virginia Tech massacre, it took law enforcement officials eight minutes to arrive at the campus after the first shot was fired. How many students and faculty were killed or injured in those eight minutes? It is accurate to state that it's possible, if concealed carry on campus was legal, this massacre might not have been so devastating.
Sources:
Crime Rates on the College Campus. (2006). School Violence Resource Centerhttp://www.arsafeschools.com/Files/CrimeRateonCollegeCampus.pdf
Summary Campus Crime and Security Statistics - Criminal Offenses. (2005). US Department of Education
http://www.ed.gov/admins/lead/safety/crime/criminaloffenses/index.html
Students for Concealed Carry on Campus. (2009). Crime on College Campuses in the United States.
http://concealedcampus.org/campus_crime.php
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