“We’re gun carriers, we’re the South, we’re Tennessee. We tote guns, we carry guns, we carry several guns. You’d never think it would happen here, but it caught us off guard,” said Kristi Manning, co-owner of Carter Shooting Supply in Harrison, Tenn. Her gun shop, along with others in the area, is seeing an increase in activity and sales after the recent attacks on military personnel in Chattanooga.
Since the attacks, Carter Shooting Supply has sold 15 AR-15 rifles and 40 other guns, and as many as 80 people signed up for a concealed-carry permit class over the weekend. Shooters Depot in Chattanooga experienced a similar spike—they sold nearly 90 guns, and close to 300 people signed up for a class.
“You’re never going to take the guns out of the bad people’s hands no matter what you do,” said Michael Brown, a Ringgold resident. “So I feel like we need to arm ourselves and be prepared.”
