What if the city you lived in passed a law requiring you to own a gun? Would you be glad
that the neighbor on either side of you was now fully armed? Would you go out and buy one
legally and get a permit for it? Or, if you are against gun ownership would you pack your bags
and move to someplace where guns are illegal? Well in the city of Kennesaw, Georgia a local
law requires every head of household residing in the city limits to maintain a firearm. What
is Kennesaw like? Is it the Wild West? Or is it a polite society with no crime? Let’s take a look.
The “everyone must own a gun” law dates back to 1982 in Kennesaw,
which is a quiet suburban town outside of Atlanta. There are no big chain stores or strip malls,
instead it is a southern town with a main street lined with locally owned shops and businesses.
Just like in any town there is a mix of people with different beliefs and backgrounds. Some
argue passionately for the law that requires everyone to own a gun, and others, not so much.
So, what is it like in Kennesaw? It is quiet. Their crime rate is in line with
the surrounding towns, and people wear their guns more visibly than most people from other
states are used to seeing. However, everyone who owns a gun must have an open carry permit,
and have purchased it legally. These rules are not optional. Kennesaw is
less like the Wild West, and more like any small American town with a slight quirk.
The law requiring every head of household to own a gun was created over 30 years ago and was claimed
to be a crime deterrent. Lieutenant Craig Graydon is always happy to explain the law,
and is honest in how it has, or has not, affected the town. In interviews Graydon discusses that
back when the law was first made crime was not running rampant in Kennesaw. Instead,
the law was more of a political response to the city of Morton Grove, Illinois,
who passed an ordinance banning handguns within the city limits.
The 1982 law required every head of household within the Kennesaw city limits to own a firearm.
The law was a rebuke towards Morton Grove. At the time the law in Kennesaw was made most of the
people in the rural community already owned their own guns. Lieutenant Graydon also explains how the
law was always going to be unenforceable, so it was more a symbolic ordinance than anything else.
It is interesting that although the law requires that everyone in Kennesaw own a gun, this law is
not, and never has been, enforced. There are also exemptions from the law. For example,
if a citizen of Kennesaw is morally opposed to guns, they are exempt from having to own
one. There is no ordinance in place to force someone to buy a gun, or to check to make sure
everyone owns one. Really the law is in place more as a statement than a way to deter crime.
You may be wondering what the crime rate is in Kennesaw, Georgia. Is it high, low,
or maybe there’s absolutely no crime at all? In theory the law was put in place to maintain
order and to prevent crime. The thought was that a criminal would think twice about committing a
felony in a town where everyone had a gun. Even today some of the residents of Kennesaw feel that
owning a firearm allows them to protect themselves in a way they would not be able to otherwise.
But is this true? Is everyone really safer because of a law that requires the citizens
of Kennesaw to carry a gun? According to Lieutenant Graydon the law does not
have much to do with the crime rate in the town. In fact, since the law was put into
place Kinnesaw had nine homicides and there are still minor crimes committed. However,
this is in line with the crime statistics in the surrounding areas. So, it seems that the
law requiring everyone to have a gun did not drastically reduce crime in Kennesaw.
Grayson actually argues that since almost everyone already owned a gun, and the law is not enforced,
it is because of good police work and community outreach that crime rates have stayed low.
It would seem that the law had no effect at all on crime. Instead,
allowing business to go on as usual, and not enforcing the law,
has made Kennesaw just as safe and law abiding as the surrounding areas.
It may surprise you how the residents of Kennesaw feel about the gun law.
There are definitely opposing views: some take the law to the extreme,
while others are ambivalent or don’t even know the law exists at all.
One of the more extreme residents is Dent Myers, who is the 81 year old owner of
Wildman’s Civil War Surplus and Herb Shop in Kennesaw. His store is draped in Confederate
flags and one of the largest businesses in the Kennesaw downtown area. Unsurprisingly,
Myers is adamant that the government outside of the town is against him. He will tell anyone who
will listen that: “they're trying to confiscate our guns,” referring to the federal government.
It may not be surprising that in Myers shop you can find shirts honoring the
Ku Klux Klan and bumper stickers with racist connotations on them. This is
clearly not what everyone in Kennesaw believes in,
but the fact that Myers store is one of the largest businesses in town does say something.
The gun law also led Myers to provide charity in a unique way. He used to sell honorary Kennesaw
citizenship certificates to people visiting the town. The proceeds from these certificates would
go to buy poor Kennesaw citizens ammunition for their guns. In some places charity is used to
feed and house people in need. But for Myers who fully embraces the law requiring everyone
to own a gun in Kennesaw, ammunition is more important than those other things.
It is unfair to judge the town on just one man’s actions however. Some may agree with Myers and the
gun law, while others feel differently. The United States has experienced mass shootings in schools,
movie theaters, and concerts in recent years. When the conversation of gun control
was brought up to Kennesaw citizens, you can probably guess where Myers stood. However,
other citizens of the town like Andy Crowe welcomes the national conversation.
He is wary and doesn’t want to lose his hunting rifles, but, he also feels that things are getting
out of hand. Regardless, Mr. Crowe says that the gun law in Kennesaw is now engrained in its
citizens. He feels a sense of responsibility that he wants to pass on to his kids.
This brings us to an interesting statistic in the town where everyone is required to own a gun.
Lieutenant Graydon estimates that only about 50 percent of Kennesaw residents own guns.
The other 50 percent either choose not to, or just don’t know the law even exists.
In reality the town legally requires every citizen
to own a firearm, but does not really hold anyone accountable to this law.
Many citizens do feel it is good for the town to have the legislation though. Shannon Smith,
a business owner in Kennesaw, says she carries a gun because she owns a business, not necessarily
because it is the law. Many residents are adamant that the real problem with gun violence is mental
illness and not the guns. Getting people with mental illnesses the help they need and keeping
guns out of their hands is something that almost all United States citizens agree with.
Many of the citizens of Kennesaw admit that the country has a problem with gun violence.
Not even the town with a law requiring guns by every household is immune to the
atrocities that occur because of the very weapons they are legally required to own.
You might be wondering what types of guns the citizens of Kennesaw have. That varies
between owners. Most law abiding citizens wear a pistol in a holster on their hip, but there are
other members of the community who take the law a little more seriously, and have gone with a more
militant option. Some households have an arsenal of AR-15 style rifles, shotguns, and a plethora
of handguns. Again, this is not everyone in the town, but some citizens do enjoy their firearms.
The people of Kennesaw for the most part are proud of their guns. They are vocal
about keeping their weapons and the law that allows them to do so. With more mass
shootings occurring in the United States, more pressure has been put on gun laws and lobbyists.
That is why not only politicians within the United States contact
Kennesaw about their gun law, but also people from around the world as well.
Officials from Kennesaw have received calls from as far away as Norway
inquiring about their mandatory gun law.
The town of Kennesaw has reached somewhat of a balance. Yes, a lot of the citizens own guns,
but most of them are willing to have discussions about gun rights and ways to make sure that they
are only kept by responsible owners. That being said, the fact that the crime rates
in Kennesaw are similar to the surrounding areas, the lack of enforcement of the gun law,
and the number of citizens who don’t even know the law exists suggests that a law requiring everyone
to own a gun serves no actual purpose. The law is more of a political statement than anything else.
Now go check out “Could The US Citizens Fight Off The US Military?”
Or watch “Common Stereotypes About Americans.”