By Joseph P. Tartaro | Executive Editor
You can add gun shows as another key target in the current campaign of the anti-gun crowd to exploit the Parkland, FL, school shooting incident to undercut the Second Amendment.
As previously reported in TheGunMag a few months ago, the Westchester County, NY, executive has banned all future gun shows at county-owned public venues. Earlier the Nashville, TN, Fairgrounds had also shut off future gun shows, and now the Del Mar, CA, Fairgrounds has a gun show ban under advisement.
However, on April 24, the Del Mar Fairgrounds Board of Directors unanimously voted to reconsider their policies regarding the use of the Fairgrounds by the Crossroads of the West Gun Show. While no official action has yet been taken, the Board is expected to publicly discuss the matter later this year during its September meeting.
The decision by the Board is a result of anti-gun forces pressuring the Board to prohibit the Show from taking place. In response, California Rifle and Pistol Association (CRPA) distributed an informative flyer highlighting all of the safety and education programs they offer, many of which are offered at all of the Crossroads of the West Gun Shows. In addition, CRPA pointed out all of the state laws related to gun show transactions.
Several hundred attended the April 24 board meeting, most of whom were there to express their support for continuing the Show. The Board expected the crowd to be so large, in fact, that the meeting was moved to a larger venue.
Bob Templeton, owner of the Crossroads of the West Gun Show, was in attendance and had this to say following the Board’s decision:
“The push to ban the Show has nothing to do with public safety. It is a manifestation of the anti-gun community’s cultural war against Second Amendment supporters. Rather than addressing real world solutions, they want to prohibit any public forum supportive of the right to keep and bear arms. I thank NRA and CRPA for their support and encourage every law-abiding citizen and gun owner to support their efforts by becoming members.”
For now, the Crossroads of the West Gun Show will continue at the Del Mar Fairgrounds. The next Show is scheduled for May 19-20, with additional Shows scheduled in July and December this year.
