Locked & loaded ladies: More women carrying guns for personal safety

JACKSON, Tenn. — More women are arming themselves and choosing to carry guns for protection. A local gun dealer said he has seen an increase in female customers.

“Although I certainly don’t want to hurt anybody, I’m not afraid to,” Dawn Garofalo said.

Garofalo is a wife, mom and grandmother. She also carries a gun. “I got my permit to carry about two and half years ago, but I’ve been shooting guns since I was younger,” she said.

Garofalo owns Bravo Hair Gallery and Color Bar in north Jackson. “If something happens at our salon, we want to make sure that everybody’s safe,” she said. “These girls are like my work daughters.”

Frankie Lax, president and CEO of MaxxGuard in Jackson, started teaching handgun carry permit classes about 15 years ago. He said they now see more women than men. “A lot of women that we have have no intention of carrying a gun,” Lax said. “They just want to learn how to use a gun safely and properly.”

According to a Pew Research Center article published this year, 22 percent of women in America say they personally own a gun. “They just want to be able to protect themselves, and a lot of women want to protect themselves and their kids,” Lax said.

Paul Burkart owns Smokin’ Guns in north Jackson. He estimates about 40 percent of his customers are women. “I would say it’s been the last year and a half we’ve probably seen more traffic with women coming in,” he said.

Burkart said the hammerless revolver is popular among women because it is light and easy to use. “You pop it open,” he said. “You put in five bullets. You close it and you pull the trigger and it fires.”

Burkart said he is seeing more products geared toward women. “Everything from different designs of camos to your turquoises and things,” he said.

Garofalo said she’s never had to fire a shot to protect herself, but she said she feels safer carrying a gun. “We have to protect ourselves,” she said. “We have to be advocates for ourselves. It’s built into the Constitution. It’s our right to bear arms.”

For more information on handgun carry permits, click here.