Girls With Guns: Quotes From Heated Debate on Arming Female College Students to Deter Campus Rape

Would predators be less likely to attack girls with guns? That's the question many are asking as the debate rages over arming female college students to protect against sexual assaults.

Here's what people are saying about it:

• "If you've got a person that's raped because you wouldn’t let them carry a firearm to defend themselves, I think you’re responsible." – Florida Rep. Dennis Baxley during debate in a House subcommittee

ALERT: Should Obama Have More Control Over Guns? Vote Now

• "If these young, hot little girls on campus have a firearm, I wonder how many men will want to assault them. The sexual assaults that are occurring would go down once these sexual predators get a bullet in their head." – Assemblywoman Michele Fiore in an interview with The New York Times

• "I've found unloaded weapons very un-useful, ma'am." – Texas state Sen. Brian Birdwell, introducing a bill to a Senate committee and responding to a question about the risk of loaded guns on campuses, according to the Texas Observer.

• "A college campus is not a place to be carrying guns around; our campus police agree with that, and so does law enforcement." – Florida State University President John Thrasher to The New York Times

• "The current rules guarantee criminals a free shot." – David Burnett, spokesman for Students for Concealed Carry

VOTE NOW: Do You Support a Ban on All Fully Automatic Rifles?

• "I think it’s a terrible idea. From what I’ve seen, sexual assault is often linked to situations where people are drinking, so it’s not a good idea to have concealed weapons around that." – Stetson University senior Mariana Prado to The New York Times

• "I think the belief that absolutely no one ever brings a weapon onto campus under the current restrictions is naive." – Derek Armstrong, Nevada Assemblyman, to the University of Nevada Las Vegas newspaper The Rebel Yell

• "What would have changed if I was carrying my weapon that night?" – Amanda Collins, a 2007 campus rape victim and permit holder for concealed weapons who abided by the law and didn’t carry her firearm to school with her, told a Senate subcommittee this was the "unanswered unanswered question of [her] life."

URGENT: Do You Support Obama's Plans for Stricter Gun Control? Vote Now

Related Stories:

• Girls With Guns: 5 Actresses Who Shoot More Than Just Movies
  
• Girls With Guns: 5 Workout Tips for Women to Improve Shooting Endurance