Iowa is granting gun permits to legally and completely blind residents, a move that has gun advocates and lawmakers butting heads.
"State law says it cannot deny someone the right to carry a weapon based on any physical disabilities. Advocates for the disabled say forbidding the blind from having a gun would violate the Americans with Disabilities Act." (Via Al Jazeera)
The federal law prohibits treating people differently due to disability. (Via Americans with Disabilities Act)
The public relations director for the National Federation of the Blind said, "Presumably they're going to have enough sense not to use a weapon in a situation where they would endanger other people, just like we would expect other people to have that common sense."(Via Salon)
“If I needed to fire this, you know, I mean, I can hear where people are, so I’d just point and shoot.”
But that is the type of notion that has one sheriff scratching his head, telling The Des Moines Register: "I'm not an expert in vision. [But] If you see nothing but a blurry mass in front of you, then I would say you probably shouldn't be shooting something."
But is good vision any less important when shooting a gun than it is when driving a car? That’s something the visually impaired are already barred from doing.
Well, ThinkProgress notes that the right to bear arms is specifically protected under the Constitution, while the privilege of driving a car is not. (Via YouTube / Windingroadmagaine)
Therefore, it’s difficult to impose gun regulations on the blind. Visually impaired Iowans are already allowed to own guns. The topic up for debate now is “whether there is a different safety concern when it comes to letting them carry guns in public.”
Iowa is one of the only states that grants gun permits to the blind.
Many other states have laws blocking blind people from owning weapons. In Nebraska and South Carolina, for instance, residents are required to show "proof of vision" before they can receive a permit. (Via USA Carry)
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