Two gun laws pending in the NC legislature would make citizens less safe

NC guns laws

The N.C. legislature is considering two bills that defy common-sense gun laws in our state.

Senate Bill 43 seeks to allow guns in places of worship affiliated with schools. The potential for those guns being fired accidentally is a real threat to students and teachers. So are “good guy with a gun” shootouts.

House Bill 48 seeks to arm some of our emergency medical workers. Our EMS crews need to be focused on patients. They can’t be distracted by where their guns are. And the community shouldn’t have to worry about dangerous reactions from armed medical personnel.

N.C. legislators need to know that these bills are a slippery slope for gun safety in North Carolina.

Louise Martin, Raleigh

Citizen councils

I have been on the Raleigh City Council nearly six years. During my tenure I’ve attended nearly every meeting of the four Citizen Advisory Councils in my district, plus many elsewhere in the city.

CACs were award-winning volunteer organizations that worked hard to engage citizens. They innovated with social media, live-streamed meetings, and informed citizens about issues and upcoming meetings through yard signs and newsletters.

When I looked at the demographics a few years ago I found CACs were diverse, with nearly half in Black and minority neighborhoods and 39% of officers people of color.

Banning CACs from local government is beyond disappointing. It is damaging to our city at a time when we need to come together. Let’s bring back the CACs.

David Cox, Raleigh

Monuments

I was shocked to read the headline “North Carolinians still favor keeping Confederate monuments. Here’s what has changed” (April 8).

When one looks deeper at the new Elon University Poll, the cross tabulations table shows that 70% of whites compared to 25% of Blacks favor retaining Confederate monuments.

The argument for removing Confederate statutes from public land is premised on their origin as symbols of historical and ongoing white supremacy. The Elon poll clearly indicates that the only reason they remain is because whites want them there. That looks like white supremacy to me.

The simple fact that a majority wants something, doesn’t make it just or fair. Indeed the history of this state shows that majority views are rarely that.

Joseph Graves Jr., Greensboro

Sports and politics

I strongly feel that Major League Baseball, as well as all other fan entertainment entities, should stay out of politics.

The purpose of these entities is purely fan entertainment, and I don’t want them supporting my political beliefs/views or going against them.

Fans are people from across the political spectrum — liberals, moderates and conservatives. The dollars that support these entities come mainly from fans of all political persuasions. MLB needs to stay out of politics and just play ball.

Glen Hinnant, Wendell

End the filibuster

The filibuster was created to undermine our voice as voters and slow progress on critical issues. It’s time to put an end to this Jim Crow relic and make sure our government is working for us. U.S. senators must end the filibuster and do the job that we sent them to Washington to do: Pass legislation that is vital to our needs.

James Kaufmann, Chapel Hill

Distracted driving

April is Distracted Driving Awareness month, Alcohol Awareness month, and April 26-30 is National Work Zone Awareness Week. As director of the N.C. Governor’s Highway Safety Program, I urge every driver to refocus their attention on driving behaviors that may contribute to preventable roadway deaths.

Distractions come in many forms: texting, speeding, impaired driving, being inattentive in construction zones.

In 2020 in North Carolina 1,982 people were killed in alcohol-related crashes, 157 died in distracted driving crashes, and 42 were killed in work zones.

A traveling National Work Zone Memorial will be on display next week at the NCDOT welcome center on I-95 in Northampton County. Sadly, there are 1,592 names on it, including 36 fallen workers from N.C.

Please, drive safe, drive sober, drive the speed limit and buckle up.

Mark Ezzell, Garner