Author: Karen Grigsby Bates

The Philadelphia group Black Guns Matter offered firearms education and safety training at Philly Fire Arms Academy in May. Bastiaan Slabbers The deaths last week of three African-American men in encounters with police, along with the killing of five Dallas officers by a black shooter, have left many African-American gun owners with conflicting feelings; those range from shock to anger and defiance. As the debate over gun control heats up, some African-Americans see firearms as critical to their safety, especially in times of racial tension. The Reverend Kenn Blanchard, who’s known on social media as Black Man With A Gun, is an evangelical minister, former federal security officer, and firearms trainer. He’s also a gun-rights advocate and the father of a young man. The police shooting deaths of Delrawn Small in New York City, Alton Sterling in Baton Rouge and Philando Castile in Falcon Heights, Minn. have shaken him deeply. So have the deaths of five Dallas police officers at what had been a peaceful protest march. The Code Switch Podcast, Episode 8: No Words July 9, 2016 • It’s hard to figure out what to say after this week’s horrific violence, which began with two viral videos of police shooting black men and ended with a deadly attack by a gunman on police officers. When Blanchard heard the news from Dallas, he says it catapulted him back to the...