Between 2013 and 2022, 239 members of the U.S. military were killed in action. In that same span, American schools saw 349 deaths from gun violence, over 100 more than those seen in active combat zones.

In the last year alone, there were shootings at the Naval Academy, Brown University and Florida State University, among others. I personally know people at each of these schools. Each time, I was frantically checking my phone for updates, texting my friends and agonizing as I prayed for them to respond. Part of the social contract between the student and university is the agreement that the university will ensure student safety as best as possible.

House Bill No. 99, which was recently filed in the Louisiana Legislature by Representative McCormick, undermines this very agreement by seeking to bring more guns to college campuses in Louisiana. Under the guise of protecting Second Amendment rights, the bill aims to prevent any university or private college that receives state funding from restricting anyone on its campuses from carrying a firearm unless in federally prohibited areas.

The bill states that any person above 18 years old is “lawfully permitted to possess a firearm pursuant to state and federal law.” Furthermore, the bill goes on to say that, “no student, faculty member, staff member or visitor shall be subject to discipline, penalty or retaliation solely for carrying a firearm”, unless in attendance at a school-sponsored function or in a federally recognized gun-free zone.

What message does that send to the students?

Imagine how a college freshman, thousands of miles from home, may feel seeing the student next to them have a pistol in their bag, knowing they are one bad day from never seeing home again.

At what point is education no longer a matter of learning, but of survival?

Jack Appleton is a political science major residing in Baton Rouge, La.