FACT CHECK: Did Mississippi Pass A Law That Allows Teachers To Carry Guns On School Campuses?
A post shared on Facebook claims Mississippi recently passed a law allowing teachers with gun permits to carry firearms on a school campus.
There is no evidence to suggest Mississippi passed such a law. A spokesperson for the Mississippi Department of Education denied the claim.
A recent survey conducted by PDK International found that nearly half of all American adult respondents were in favor of arming teachers as a means to prevent school shootings, according to Education Week. A viral Facebook post claims the state of Mississippi recently passed a law to do just that.
“Mississippi just passed the law that all teachers, with permits are allowed to carry on campus,” reads the widely shared July 26 post.
The claim is inaccurate. Check Your Fact found no credible news reports to suggest that a recent Mississippi law allows teachers to carry guns on school campuses. No mention of such a law could be found on the state’s official website or on any of its social media pages.
“The information in the social media post is not accurate,” said Jean Cook, a spokesperson for the Mississippi Department of Education (MDE), in an email to Check Your Fact.
Cook suggested the post may be related to a July 21 State Board vote that clarified language around the state’s rules for weapons at public schools and directed Check Your fact to a press release from the MDE about the vote.
“The State Board has taken no action to allow guns in schools,” reads the press release. “The State Board’s action does not give school personnel the ability to carry guns in schools. Rather, the State Board’s vote today removed language from a policy that conflicted with Mississippi’s 2011 enhanced conceal carry laws. The policy update is part of an ongoing review of State Board policies to make sure all are up to date and in compliance with current law.”
The press release goes on to note that each school’s weapons policy must be determined by local school districts. (RELATED: Have Assault Weapons Been Used In ‘Hundreds’ Of School Shootings?)
This is not the first time a false claim regarding guns in schools has appeared on social media. Check Your Fact previously debunked an image that suggested Israel does not have school shootings because students are allowed to carry firearms to class.
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