Illinois must pass concealed-carry law
The General Assembly had a golden opportunity this past session to grant the law-abiding citizens of Illinois a right to defend themselves with the passage of the Family and Personal Protection Act. This bill would have allowed us to apply for and be granted a permit to carry a concealed weapon for self-protection, once we undergo mandatory training and a rigorous background check.
But once again law-abiding citizens were denied this right while criminals continue to be assured that citizens they target will be unarmed.
There has been a lot of misunderstanding and misinformation about what a concealed carry law is, especially by the anti-gun lobby led by Richard Daley, and it is time Illinoisans get the truth. There are more than 1.2 million legal gun owners currently in Illinois. They are your neighbors, friends, family members. They have jobs, homes and businesses. The anti-gun lobby would have you believe we are just a bunch of nuts, looking for trouble and hoping to shoot everyone. Nothing could be farther from the truth.
Those who are opposed to the right to carry a gun in Illinois will paint a very grim picture if such a law were passed. That there suddenly will be shootouts in the streets, that people will settle their differences with guns and crime will skyrocket. If this were the case, why has it not happened in the other 48 states that allow their citizens to carry a gun for personal protection?
Is there something different about us in Illinois that makes us incapable of the same right?
We do not seek a return to the wild west, just the ability to protect ourselves and our families. We are advocates for the woman who gets off work late at night and has to walk through a dark parking garage to her car, for the small business owner who has to drop off his or her money deposit at the bank at the bank drop late at night, the parent with a car full of children who must stop at an ATM or the person jogging or biking on an isolated trail.
These situations and many more like them are prime targets for violent criminals. We need the right to protect ourselves in Illinois. Pass this law.
Scott Webb
Elgin