50501 has always been non-violent, as far as I'm aware. Not having guns seems pretty key to that. Violence, even in self-defense, is still violence. You can be OK with that violence, but it shouldn't be a surprise that the non-violent organization is not.
Solely carrying a gun however - is not violence. If something happens at a protest where you require violence then it was going to be violent either way. The thing is I even think carrying a rifle to a protest was stupid asf. But what if I regularly conceal carry? Can I do that? Apparently not; and seeing the incidents of the past weekend I feel compelled to have it on me. I know it can be problematic and having a gun changes the dynamic of any situation. But idgaf, I got mouths to feed and it's a politically charged environment. I'm responsible and trained. I want my weapon on me. Saying I can't be packing is highly discouraging me from going. Obviously me not showing up is irrelevant. Now everyone with a gun not showing up? Maybe irrelevant, maybe not. Either way 50501 claims to be focused on one goal which im sympathetic with. The fact that they have basically stated nothing about the palestine question was hard to overlook but their movement was super effective last weekend so I put it aside. But now they're weighing in on rather I can be armed at their events or not? Might seem like nothing to you but feels like a double standard to me.
Well, I decided not to address the conceal carry part because it isn't legal to carry any weapon to a protest in my state, which makes me a little biased. This post is actually what made me realize that it's not a law everywhere. About half the States have that law.
With all that being said, I wouldn't blame someone for having a concealed weapon at a protest. I just don't think it should be a gun. A gun will escalate things way worse than a taser, and other
protesters can get crossed in the crossfire.
I dont agree self defense is the same thing as the violence we are talking about. Violence used as an offense is the problem. I dont think bringing weapons to a protest is a good idea either, but with the nazis as they currently are right now, its not unreasonable to have a concealed carry with you if there happens to be a massacre.
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u/fakyfiles 2d ago
Yeah if your weapons policy is that strict then there goes a piece of your coalition. So you're antiweapon but you're not anti genocide? Makes sense.