Safe Restaurants Project

In response to anticipated efforts by the gun prohibitionists, Grass Roots North Carolina is launching the Safe Restaurants Project. As the release below makes clear, it is an effort to encourage restaurant owners to NOT post their restaurants against concealed carry.

From the GRNC release:

Gun Group Targets Restaurants

GRNC 'Safe Restaurants Project' will admonish gun rights supporters to report restaurants which post against concealed handguns

Recently signed by Governor Pat McCrory, on October 1st House Bill 937 will expand North Carolina's concealed handgun law into restaurants. Under the statute, restaurants may still elect to post signs prohibiting firearms.

Although concealed handgun permit-holders will still be prohibited from imbibing alcohol, gun control advocates are already planning to pressure restaurants to prohibit concealed carry.

Accordingly, and with great reluctance, GRNC is responding with its "GRNC Safe Restaurants Project," to ensure the new law will provide its intended deterrent to violent crime.

The 3 objectives of the "GRNC Safe Restaurants Project":

• Provide education for concealed handgun permit-holders to avoid accidental violations;
• Provide "Protection Preferred" signage enabling supporting restaurants to subtly identify their support to permit-holders and supporters; and
• Create a "Restaurant "Don't Buy List" which:

• Allows thousands of gun owners to report posted restaurants;
• Sends restaurants notification they have been reported and requests them to remove signs or inform GRNC that a mistake has been made;
• Provides contact information for posted restaurants, enabling thousands of supporters to contact those restaurants to explain that they will not patronize posted establishments.

GRNC will distribute Restaurant Don't Buy lists and relevant materials to tens of thousands of gun owners via:

• GRNC's email alert network, comprising 87,000 supporters;
• Gun shows in Asheville, Hickory, Charlotte, Winston-Salem, Lexington, Concord, Greensboro, Raleigh, Fayetteville and Jacksonville;
• GRNC's distribution network of nearly 50 gun shops;
• Concealed handgun permit classes statewide; and
• GRNC's highly popular website.

Said GRNC president Paul Valone:

"It's unfortunate GRNC must counter gun control activists' attempts to undermine a law intended to deter restaurant crime and save lives. We fully sympathize with restaurant owners caught in the middle of a battle we'd rather not fight, but they should understand that, according to the Pew Research Center, gun rights supporters donate four times more and are more politically involved than gun control advocates. They should ask themselves whether they want to alienate the 399,268 North Carolinians who have applied for concealed handgun permits."

This brings to mind a suggestion made many times by Tom Gresham when coming across a store or restaurant that is posted against concealed carry. Tom calls the establishment and says to the manager, "I wanted to shop (or eat) at your store (restaurant) but it was unsafe."  When they ask what you mean, you tell them they have posted against concealed carry and you won't subject your family to the risk. Then you tell them what you spent at their competitors. To really get the point across, you fax them a copy of your receipt from their competitor. Done often enough, it will get the message across.