University of Texas students upset with the recent state ruling that allows concealed carry on campus have been handing out free dildos in protest of the new law.
The distribution of sex toys -which are considered illegal to openly carry under local “indecency” laws- was the idea of Jessica Jin, leader of the protest movement “Cocks not Glocks: Campus (Dildo) Carry.”
“We are fighting absurdity with absurdity,” Jin said. “Texas has decided it is not all obnoxious or illegal to allow deadly concealed weapons on campus. But walking around with a dildo could land you in trouble,”
According to Reuters, the law that green-lighted campus carry took effect on August 1st, with fairly strict restrictions- only licensed concealed weapons permit holders aged 21 and older can carry their handguns on campus for self defense.
“So, they’ve proven that sexual assault rates… they increase when guns are readily available,” explained student Rosie Zander, a junior at the university. “So, how do you tell a woman that’s eighteen [and] going to college, who can’t tell a gun until she’s twenty-one that she’s now safer?” It is not certain which study she was referencing.
However, a study by The Crime Prevention Research Center found that concealed carry permit holders were not only the most law abiding demographic in the United States, they committed misdemeanors and felonies at one-sixth the rate of police officers, as well as committing firearms-related violations seven times less than law enforcement officers.. At UT, only licensed permit holders are allowed to carry.
In addition, the study found that between 2012 and 2016, in states that provide data by gender, the number of women with permits has increased twice as quickly as the number of men with permits.
Despite this, hundreds of university faculty and staff protested the passing of the campus carry law, citing that academic stress, alcohol and firearms don’t mix. Under Texas law, it is currently illegal to carry while intoxicated.
Protesters at Wednesday’s rally shouted slogans like: “If you are packing heat, we are packing meat” and handed out thousands of sex toys, mostly donated by local stores. In addition, they also handed out plastic zip ties could attach them to their backpacks as an act of defiance.
“We are strapping gigantic swinging dildos to our backpacks,” Jin said of the protest on social media. “Just about as effective at protecting us from sociopathic shooters, but much safer for recreational play.”
However, the protest is not being met with the amount of ire from concealed carry advocates as the protesters may have hoped.
Some pro-carry individuals created a UT-colored image that says “COEXIST”, showing a 1911 pistol and a dildo forming the “X.”
I fully support their right to carry a sex toy,” state director for Students for Concealed Carry, Brian Bensimon, told KUTV.
Bensimon says that his organization has been doing studies to look into the rates at which people carry concealed and had found that only 5 to 15 people in campus housing will currently carry.
“You can’t really say for sure whether it’s more or less safe (to carry on campus) but we say because you can’t make that claim, it’s not worth restricting the personal liberty of the people,” Bensimon said.
Third year student Forrest Sullivan said the rally was dramatic and emotional, though lacking in persuasive argument.
“Their rhetorical strategy is going to alienate of people who are on the fence about this,” he said.
Texas is one of three states -including Florida and Pennsylvania- who have over one million permit holders within their respective borders. Currently, eight states allow concealed carry on campus, with several more working to push proposals through the legislative system.
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