Louisiana School Raffling Weapons As Part Of Fundraiser

Bowling Green School is a K-12 school that is located in Franklinton Louisiana. Franklinton is a community of about 4,000 residents located in the northeast corner of southeast Louisiana. A fundraiser for the school's Project Graduation has caught the attention of many for a very specific reason.

The reason?

Part of the fundraising efforts includes a raffle for two AR-15 rifles. As a matter of fact, 30 guns in total will be given away during the raffle. The money generated is expected to be about $30,000 and proceeds will go back to help keep students safe.

In light of the recent events in Parkland Florida, you can see why this particular raffle has captured the attention of people who don't live and work in Franklinton.

Victoria Coy is Executive Director of the Louisiana Violence Reduction Coalition and while she has voice support for Project Graduation she does have an issue with the gun raffle.

What these parents may not realize is that they are going from the frying pan into the fire. We know that the proliferation of guns is the greatest single factor in causing gun violence.

Brent Hoggat is the owner of H&H Gun Shop, his company is providing the weapons for the raffle. As you might imagine, he has a different point of view concerning the raffle and the inclusion of the AR-15 rifles.

It’s a legal firearm to own. It’s not a fully automatic weapon, it functions just like any other semi-automatic weapon. The only other sentiment is how it looks.

 

Both Hoggat and Coy's remarks were chronicled by the Louisiana Radio Network.

Needless to say, emotions have been running high on both sides of the debate. However, they are in total agreement in their support of Project Graduation. There is certainly an unsettling irony in this situation. Since both sides also agree that keeping children safe is at the very top of the list of priorities.