A Culture of Firearms

Today, as I drive the few kilometers to the closest grocery store I will pass several armed guards. I’ve never seen so many weapons on display. They seem to be everywhere. When I visited my sister in Houston Texas a few years ago, we went to visit the NASA museum. At the front entrance, we were asked to open our bags and reminded to remove mace and or any hand guns as they were not allowed on the premises. Coming from Canada, this was a total shock for me as both things are illegal where I grew up. Now I realize we are not in Kansas, or Texas, anymore but Tegucigalpa, one of the most violent cities in the world. Guns are part of the culture.

I’ve tried counting how many openly displayed firearms I see on a regular outing to the grocery store. It starts with a rotating shift of guards at the front gate who allow cars to enter through the heavy metal doors which they open – once they recognize the car and driver. The first time I noticed the security guards attire was when he ran over to help me lift the stroller up the three short steps to the pool area. As he bent over, I got a full view of the revolver in his holster and the five bullets decorating his belt. Next on the journey, I drive by another armed guard sitting in his little hut beside the driveway he sports a handgun as he watches the cars go by and protects the gated community just one street over. If I need to stop to fill the car with gas, there is usually an armed guard wielding a rifle as he watches over the gas pumps. La Colonia is an upscale grocery store so there is an armed guard supervising over the parking lot; he wears a shirt with a logo, a hat, shiny black boots and sports a long shotgun. A parking agent is usually present to assist with reverse parking into tight corners; he wears a reflector vest and carries a loud whistle. In the parking lot there is a guard sitting in a little shelter raised up on stilts closely watching the activity in the parking lot; his automatic weapon at the ready. As I enter the grocery store I am reassured to see a sign that reads “no fumar, no armas” – right beside another guard with his blaster hanging over his shoulder.

Until recently policemen in London did not carry guns, they only used batons. Rules of law and fear of impunity were thought to be enough to dissuade criminals. However, « Since 2010, Honduras has had one of the highest murder rates in the world. The National Violence Observatory (NVO), an academic research institution based out of Honduras’ National Public University, reported a murder rate of 60 per 100,000 in 2015.» It is not expected to change much for 2016 (OSAC website)

Not only is there a visible police and army presence here in Tegucigalpa but there are guns and security guards everywhere. I’m told I will get used to it. But I’m not sure if I want to. I may be naïve but I can’t recall ever holding a gun in my hands. When I first started teaching English as a Second Language (ESL) at a primary school in a rural area of Gatineau (Quebec) I once asked the students: “What did you do this weekend?” One described going to the cinema another told me about his new video game and a third narrated his hunting expedition with his family. They caught grouse (birds) and ate them for dinner. I was appalled by their choice of activity and quickly rushed home to tell my boyfriend about these young boys and girls going hunting with their parents. He looked at me and shrugged replying: “I went deer hunting with my uncles when I was a teenager in Manitoba.”

In our neighbourhood, there are armed guards on every corner protecting houses (which, of course, makes it safe for us to walk around.) We talked to the guard at our gate who mentioned he shared the job of protecting our gated community with seven other men. They each do 12 hour rotating shifts. I like to think we provide a little entertainment as we walk by: B in the baby carrier and T observing every prickly cactus and bird that flies overhead, for the moment both children are oblivious to the weapons around them. However, we noticed young children playing with toy guns on our first trip to the shopping mall. Here inside our gated community, a little girl was running after her older brother with a blaring toy gun flashing bright lights as she yelled “Bang! Bang!” I don’t want my son growing up playing with firearms. I wonder: Are all the weapons on display really effective, or does it instead create a climate of fear? This got me imagining if the guard at our front entrance has ever had to use his gun? What type of training does he have? What are the required courses before being employed as a security guard? What is his background? Does he know how to diffuse a potentially dangerous situation before resorting to violence?

Finally, we turn to our neighbours in the United States and reflect on the recent deadly attack by a male shooter on the rampage in Las Vegas killing 58 innocent people and injuring 500 more. They found: “The cache of 23 weapons inside the gunman’s Las Vegas suite. And thousands of rounds of ammunition — plus an ingredient used in explosives — inside the killer’s home and car” (CNN news website.) I was saddened by Trump’s lack of response; he deflected the opportunity to talk about gun control and firearm legislation.  Honestly, I feel more scared than anything seeing so many weapons on display here. I remind myself that I am just a visitor but I hope I never get used to the feeling of being protected by armed guards. Here is some food for thought: Should we try and change a culture? How do we change a culture of firearms?