By Brandon Moseley
Alabama Political Reporter
On Wednesday, January 9th the Alabama House and Senate School Education Policy committees will hold a joint hearing to discuss the topic of “School Security and Student and Teacher Safety”. The event will be open to the public.
The event was organized following the massacre of 20 first graders and six adults in an elementary school in New Town Connecticut. None of the adults in the school were armed with their own personal firearms and there was no trained and armed security present in the school.
Speaker of the House Mike Hubbard (R) from Auburn and Senate President Pro Tempore Del Marsh (R) from Anniston are both expected to be there. Also in attendance will be Senate Education Committee Chairman Dick Brewbaker (R) from Montgomery, House Education Committee Chair Mary Sue McClurkin (R) from Indian Springs, State Superintendent Tommy Bice, the Director of the Alabama Department of Homeland Security Spencer Collier, the President of the Alabama Conference of Educators Marla Vaughn, the President of the Alabama Sheriff’s Association Grover Smith, the President of the Alabama District Attorney’s Association Jimmie Harp, Madison County District Attorney Rob Broussard, as well as members of both committees in the state legislature.
The meeting will be held at 9:00 am in Alabama State House, Room 617
State Senator Phil Williams (R) from Rainbow City told constituents on Facebook, “You are invited. If you can not attend please let me know your thoughts on what Alabama should do, if anything, to ensure the safety of our students.”
National Rifleman’s Association (NRA) Executive Vice-President Wayne LaPierre is calling on posting armed security guards in every school in America. LaPierre said, “There’ll be time for talk and debate later. This is the time, this is the day for decisive action. We can’t wait for the next unspeakable crime to happen before we act. We can’t lose precious time debating legislation that won’t work. We mustn’t allow politics or personal prejudice to divide us. We must act now. For the sake of the safety of every child in America, I call on every parent, every teacher, every school administrator and every law enforcement officer in this country to join us in the National School Shield Program and protect our children with the only line of positive defense that’s tested and proven to work.”
Some state legislators and Congressmen have expressed concerns about the cost of posting professional police personnel in every school in America, but LaPierre counters, “The only thing that stops a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a gun.”
Alabama House Minority Leader Craig Ford (D) from Gadsden wrote Monday, “There are many reasons every school should have a resource officer. Obviously, having a resource officer gives the students and faculty added protection. But studies have also shown that schools with resource officers have fewer instances of fighting and other misbehavior, as well as higher attendance. Having a resource officer in a school also sends a message to our children that they are valuable and worth protecting. We provided armed protection for the President and for our college football coaches. Surely we can also afford to provide our children with the protection that comes from having an armed resource officer in their schools.”
According to a recent Rasmussen Reports poll 62% of parents of school-aged children support having armed and properly trained security guards in the schools.
