Chicago-Area School Officials Don’t Like ‘no Guns’ Stickers That Picture Guns
So let me get this straight: they’re afraid that a simple photograph of a gun will cause problems? Wow.
School officials in a Chicago suburb are not thrilled with a state law passed last year requiring schools to post a “no gun” sticker featuring an Image of a handgun with a red slash through it.
Guns were already not allowed in schools before the law was passed, and now some school officials are worried the Image on the warning sign might send the wrong message.
“One of my biggest concerns as a principal is safety and security,†Tinley Park High School Principal Theresa Nolan told the Southtown Star. “It is bothersome to have to post a sticker of a gun that says, ‘Hey, folks, leave your guns at home.’ â€
Nolan said she feared the Image could be misinterpreted.
“I think the general public will be alarmed by it and wonder if people have been allowed to bring guns to school in the past,†Nolan said. “I have no knowledge of guns ever being in this building,†she said of her 22 years with the school district.
Nolan said she was not opposed to the law or posting the sign, but wished it could have been more subtle.
“I would have appreciated something more subtle, yet still recognizable — a logo, perhaps, not a gun,†Nolan said.
Other school officials expressed concern with the signs as well.
“It is not necessarily something you’d want on a school building,†District 123 Superintendent Paul Enderle said. “But it correlates with the law, and I think if it ultimately helps to keep schools safe, that’s the objective.â€