This happened in Anne Arundel County in Maryland. A man who’s protesting the state’s new gun control laws has been standing across the street every day from a school bus stop — with an AR-15. Via The Independent:
A local news station has come under fire after airing a segment featuring a man “protesting” recent gun restrictions by carrying an AR-15 near a school bus stop.
The man, identified as J’Den McAdory, was standing near an elementary school bus stop in Severn, Maryland, according to videos taken by parents and reported by WBAL-TV.
He was reportedly “protesting” against a recently-enacted gun control law in Maryland by openly carrying an AR-15. The law requires people to demonstrate a particular need to get a license to carry a concealed gun in public.
But that’s not the only issue. The report, covered by Tolly Taylor of WBAL-TV, sparked controversy due to its perceived sympathetic approach to the man’s actions.
Prior to the segment’s broadcast, Taylor took to Twitter to tease the story, where he wrote: “Tonight on [WBAL-TV]: A man with an AR-15 has been showing up for weeks to a school bus drop off for local elementary school students.”
“Parents say their kids are afraid, the man says he’s protesting [Governor Wes Moore]’s new gun control law,” he wrote. “You’ll hear from both sides at 5+6pm.”
The framing of the story as one that would present “both sides” did not sit well with many commentators as the US continues to be ravaged by frequent mass shootings.
Sure, let’s start a vigilante squad carrying AR-15s to “protect” the neighborhood. Even if you were inclined to give J’Den McAdory the benefit of the doubt as a relatively sane, well-meaning guy, consider the type of men who would be attracted to the opportunity to carry assault rifles, itching for the chance to use them.
What could go wrong?
