Kemp Says Blacks, Women Fastest-Growing Groups of Gun Owners; Abrams Rebuts

Georgia Governor Brian Kemp is defending his record on gun rights, saying his policies removed roadblocks for the growing number of Blacks and women interested in obtaining firearms for self-defense.

The Republican governor made the remarks Monday night while squaring off with Democratic challenger Stacey Abrams during the gubernatorial debate hosted by the Atlanta Press Club. Guns were a recurring issue in the debate as Abrams said Kemp allowed the streets to become "flooded" with firearms. But Kemp pushed back, saying he's allowed law-abiding citizens, particularly groups not associated with firearms, to defend themselves.

Georgia lawmakers this year approved legislation allowing those who aren't otherwise prohibited from owning firearms to carry concealed guns in public without a permit.

Kemp, who supported the legislation, said during the debate that local governments have prevented law-abiding citizens from obtaining concealed-carry permits to protect their property and family. While gun ownership has often been associated with white males, Kemp said other demographic groups are interested in acquiring firearms.

"The largest, fastest-growing segment of the population that's buying handguns and firearms is African Americans and females," said Kemp. "You know why? Because the criminals are the only ones that do have the guns."

Kemp did not provide a source for his claim and Newsweek has reached out to his campaign for comment.

But in September 2021, the National Shooting Sports Foundation, a firearms trade group based in Newtown, Connecticut, released the results of a retail survey that supported Kemp's claim.

The survey was based on the first six months of 2021 and used nearly 9.8 million background checks for gun sales. Nearly 90 percent of retailers reported an increase in Black men buying firearms. It also found that nearly 87 percent of retailers saw an increase in Black women purchasing guns.

Gun sales surged in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic and the racial justice protests that followed the killing of George Floyd by Minneapolis police. The number of guns sold continued to rise after Democratic President Joe Biden took office in 2021.

Research based on a national survey published in the Annals of Internal Medicine in February found that nearly 3 percent of U.S. adults (7.5 million) became new gun owners from January 2019 to April 2021. About half of those new gun owners were women and 20 percent were Black, according to the study.

Abrams, a Black woman, criticized Kemp during the debate, saying gang violence and gun crime had increased under Kemp's watch.

"Yes, more people were buying guns," Abrams said. "That's because they think that's the only way to protect themselves because guns have flooded our streets. These are communities that want to be safe. They don't want to have to carry weapons."

Abrams also brought up her experience with guns, saying that her grandmother taught her how to shoot. But she added that background checks for gun sales and concealed- carry permits reduce violence.

Georgia saw the rate of gun deaths increase by 25 percent from 2010 to 2019, faster than the national rate of 17 percent, according to numbers from firearms safety group Everytown for Gun Safety.

Newsweek has reached out to Abrams' campaign, the National African American Gun Association and Everytown for Gun Safety for comment.