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Cocks Not Glocks: University Of Texas Students Plan Provocative Protest Of New Campus Carry Law

CREDIT: AP PHOTO/ERIC GAY, FILE
CREDIT: AP PHOTO/ERIC GAY, FILE

Students at the University Of Texas at Austin are planning to protest a new law that permits the concealed carry of handguns on campus — with dildos.

The “campus carry” law passed by the Texas legislature and signed by the Governor in June, requires UT Austin and the other campuses in the UT system to allow students to carry guns on campus. It gives the schools some discretion on how to implement the law.

The protest is designed to draw attention to the fact that carrying a dildo to class could be “prohibited expression” under university rules. The rules prohibit “any writing or visual image, or engage in any public performance, that is obscene.”

“You’re carrying a gun to class? Yeah well I’m carrying a HUGE DILDO. Just about as effective at protecting us from sociopathic shooters, but much safer for recreational play,” the organizer, Jessica Jin, wrote.

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On Facebook, 1,800 people have registered for the event, which is scheduled for next August when the law goes into effect.

Last week, a tenured professor announced he would give up teaching at UT Austin because he was concerned about his safety in light of the new law.

The law is opposed by University of Texas System Chancellor William McRaven. “I’ve spent my whole life around guns. I grew up in Texas hunting. I spent 37 years in the military. I like guns, but I just don’t think having them on campus is the right place,” McRaven told CNN.

Concealed carry is opposed by campus police chiefs. 9 out of 10 police chiefs think the best way to deal with guns on campus is to prohibit them. Only 5 percent of police chiefs think allowing concealed carry on campus would prevent shootings.

Concealed carry on campus is also opposed by 95 percent of university presidents, 94 percent of university faculty and 79 percent of college students.

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College campuses also tend have a high level of alcohol and drug use which can lead to “impaired judgment about whether to shoot a gun.”