Second Amendment advocates, including the National Rifle Association and a group of 71 Republican legislators and legislative nominees, are asking the State Fair of Texas to reverse course on a new policy that prohibits attendees from carrying firearms.
Last week, the State Fair of Texas released a list of safety and security protocols for the 2024 State Fair that prohibits fairgoers from carrying firearms. Previously, concealed carry of firearms was permitted at the Fair.
In the wake of the State Fair’s announcement, a group of 71 Republican state legislators and nominees for legislative office released a letter calling on the State Fair to rescind the new gun ban and raising the possibility of legislation next Session to “further protect [Second Amendment] rights on lands managed by the public.
“We, the undersigned, write to you today, encouraging you to rescind your policy which bans law-abiding citizens from carrying firearms at the State Fair of Texas. While it may be that your new policy placates some, the result will make your patrons less safe.
We bring to your attention a few key statistics to support this position:
Gun free zones are magnets for crime because they present less of a threat to those who seek to do evil. Law-abiding citizens in the United States use firearms daily to defend themselves against criminals. Recent tragedies have demonstrated the sad reality that you can die while waiting on law enforcement to save your life — Those who choose to assume responsibility for their own safety understand this harsh reality.
The State Fair of Texas claims to be a “celebration of all things Texas,” yet this new policy is anything but a celebration of Texas.
The Texas Legislature has repeatedly enhanced Texans’ Second Amendment Rights, but your actions raise questions about the need for legislation next Session to further protect these rights on lands managed by the public.
Should you have any questions or wish to discuss our opposition to this policy further, please do not hesitate to contact any of our offices.”
State Representative Dustin Burrows was the first to post the letter to social media, stating, “I stand with my colleagues in opposing the State Fair of Texas’ gun ban. Seventy signatures strong! Gun-free zones don’t make us safer—they make us targets. Texans have the right to defend themselves.”
The National Rifle Association joined those calling for the State Fair to rescind its new gun ban, calling the policy “misguided” and encouraged the public to contact the State Fair to “let them know you disagree with their “No Firearms” policy because gun-free zones don’t make Texans any safer.”
In addition to thanking the lawmakers and legislative candidates for their letter, the National Rifle Association also noted that the State Fair’s new policy raises “serious questions about the legality of firearm prohibitions on government property.”
“As the State Fair of Texas noted in its press release, it is a private not-for-profit entity. However, the City of Dallas owns Fair Park, which it leases to the State Fair of Texas to operate the fair. Texas law enumerates the types of government property on which firearms are prohibited (Penal Code § 46.03). Moreover, state agencies and political subdivisions that wrongfully exclude law-abiding gun owners are subject to fines (Government Code § 411.209). Texas’ firearms preemption statute also restricts localities from enacting their firearm restrictions (Local Government Code § 229.001).”
While conservatives praised Burrows and the other lawmakers who voiced their opposition to the State Fair’s gun ban, commenters on the left were not as enamored with the legislators’ letter. One liberal activist tweeted, “Dustin [Burrows] wants kids to be shot and killed at the State Fair.”
The State Fair of Texas begins on September 27.
