Concealed Carry in NM - not for the poorest
In spite of 29 states recognizing the need to be able to carry a weapon without a license as a basic right that doesn't need permission, New Mexico continues to have a lengthy, expensive process to receive your CHL.
Between hundreds in class fees, 16 hours of time for class , time and $50 for fingerprints, 100 to the state for the application, ammo cost, travel cost, and the other time involved, it becomes clear who can and who cannot receive a CHL, and the poorest are excluded from exercising their rights due to the cost and inability to take multiple days off from work. And then you're doing it again in a couple of years because the state still distrusts you ..the law-abiding citizen that put in the effort to do it right already.
Looking at the data, we have a massive amount of shootings and nearly all of them are with weapons carried illegally. So in the end, you are forcing the good people to spend a ton of money and effort to do something that criminals are already doing...for free.
Is this the New Mexico we want? Fear mongering of constitutional carry has been negated by the data, no those 29 states didn't turn into the wild wild west. It's time to join the majority of the states in our Nation and stop the people of New Mexico from having to spend so much time and money to do something most already do, except with good intent. The people living in the best gated communities, with security at their workplaces, are the ones who maintain this, and the discrimination against the lower class is appalling.
Once your head is out of the sand, it's quite evident. The shootings don't stop, but they don't want law abiding citizens carrying weapons. Its embarrassing.
This is disproportionately affecting minorities and less privileged New Mexicans, single parents, and we have to do better. Write your representatives and request an end to these discriminatory requirements.
This isn't by design, we generally have good people running the state, but it doesn't mean it didn't end up affecting people in an unintentional manner.
I know we'll have lots of comments from people who don't want all of their rights but it doesn't change the fact that this process disproportionately affects one segment of our population that has more trouble exercising their rights. Regardless of your views on firearms, that's not right. Would it be okay if it were any other rights?