A school
district in a generally rural section of northwest Tucson, Arizona is asking
the parents of high school students and junior high school students to pledge
never to use guns or violence to resolve problems.
The “Student/Parent/Principal Contract for Eliminating Guns and
Weapons from School 2013 — 2014″ was part of the Flowing Wells Unified School
District’s registration packet for the upcoming school year, reports the Arizona Daily Independent.
Second
Amendment advocates see the terms of the contract — particularly the ones set
out for parents — as a patronizing attempt to govern behavior in private homes.
Parents who sign the agreement promise to teach high schoolers “how to settle
arguments without resorting to violence” and to tell their kids to report “guns
and weapons they see on campus to an appropriate adult” at school.
The
contract also has parents saying, “I will carry out my responsibility to teach
my children how to settle arguments without resorting to violence, and to
encourage him/her to use those ideas when necessary.”
Exactly
what “those ideas” are is left entirely unexplained.
The
contract also states: “I will teach, including by personal example, my teenager
about the dangers and consequences of the misuse of guns and weapons, and I
will keep any guns I own under lock, away from school grounds and away from my
children.”
The
“under lock” requirement has raised particular local ire. The state of Arizona
has an open-carry law. While public school campuses are among the places where
open-carry is prohibited, it is not unusual, especially in rural areas, to see
people carrying guns. Hunting is also popular. The school district even has its
very own junior rifle team. Consequently, some parents are hesitant to sign a
contract agreeing to lock guns away from teenagers at all times.
An image of the contract — on putrid bright green paper — is on display at the website of Gun Owners of Arizona, a statewide pro-gun group.
In
addition to parents, Flowing Wells Unified is asking students themselves to
sign the contract. School principals will also sign the document.
District officials assured the Daily Independent that parents and kids who refuse to sign the unilateral, non-negotiated contract will suffer no negative consequences.
