Gun-rights groups that wanted to stage a “mock mass shooting” at the University of Texas in Austin have agreed to move their event off-campus after getting a warning that they could be arrested.
The groups Come and Take It Texas and Dontcomply.com announced plans for the event on Saturday that would include cardboard guns and fake blood. The Austin campus is the site of one of the worst mass shootings in US history: sniper Charles Whitman killed 16 people in 1966, shooting dozens of victims from a perch atop the central clock tower.
The university issued a warning that the Austin campus was not open to outside groups staging demonstrations. The university said demonstrators could face trespassing charges. Organisers said the purpose of staging a mock shooting was to rally support for gun rights.
University officials said they support free speech but outside groups are routinely barred from demonstrating on campus. “When outside individuals come on campus and violate our rules… they are asked to leave. If they do not, it becomes a criminal trespass matter,” a university spokesperson said.
The mock mass shooting will coincide with a planned “open carry” march in Austin, with participants carrying rifles.
State law currently bans guns from college campuses, but that will change next year. State politicians voted to allow concealed-handgun licence-holders to bring their weapons on campus, including classrooms and dormitories, with some limitations.
The University of Texas will soon release recommendations on where concealed handguns will be allowed and where they will be prohibited. The law has met resistance from students and the faculty. Some teachers have threatened to quit or sue if they cannot ban guns from classrooms.
AP
