While Michigan Republicans are pushing to remove some licensing requirements for concealed carry one house Democrat wants to tighten restrictions on the open carry of firearms.
The legislation would limit who is allowed to open carry to a select few individuals including registered militia members, peace officers, individuals who are hunting, and members of the military who are on duty.
Democratic State Representative Cynthia A. Johnson introduced the measure. She said open carry laws only seem to apply to white people and in her district, which includes Detroit, it can feel threatening.
“I have seen white men walk in our community strapped with assault rifles,” she said. “Do you know how scary that is, can you imagine?”
Johnson said as long as their is racism in the country, open carry doesn’t mean open carry for everyone.
“We know what the atmosphere is like right now,” she said. “A white man carrying an assault rifle and a black man carrying an assault rifle, it should be the same, but it isn’t.”
Because of that, Johnson said, the rules need to be tightened.