The sounds of car horns fill downtown McLean, piercing the quiet, fall Saturday as protesters stand outside the newly opened NOVA Firearms gun store. They hold signs enticing passersby to honk as a show of support against the store’s opening. Throughout the country, gun control is a controversial issue, and Sept. 27 served as an example of the strong positions people on both sides hold.
Sergeant Gordon Sloan, a police offer who was on duty to ensure safety at the protest, estimated that up to 300 protestors were lined up down Chain Bridge Road at the event’s peak.
Laden Eshkevari, mother of two, said she is against the store because of its location.
“We’re not generally against guns,” Eshkevari said. “What we’re saying is it doesn’t make sense in downtown McLean near schools, shops, toy stores and a bank. It just doesn’t make sense.”
The store is located near Franklin Sherman Elementary School, prompting Abby Spangler, protestor and founder of the national organization Protest Easy Guns, to question whether its location violates the Gun-Free School Zones Act of 1990.
“It’s a federal law that firearms cannot be within 1,000 feet of school property, and looking at that gun store and looking at that Franklin Sherman Elementary School right there…that’s less than 1,000 feet,” Spangler said.
However, the Gun-Free School Zones Act provides exceptions for commercial storefronts, as long as any firearms sold leave unloaded and in a locked container.
Additionally, the store’s owner, former marine and McLean resident James Gates, said he attained all of the required permits and permissions to open.
“We noticed the school was behind [the store] so we called the county and talked to them and they said as long as we follow the [U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms]’s laws it is fine,” Gates said. “We called the ATF. They said it was okay.”
Gates acknowledged that the location of the store is likely what sparked the protest.
“I think the reason we are getting the reaction now because we are prominent, we have a sign on the road, [so] people know we have a gun store here,” Gates said.
Former Franklin Sherman PTA president and current FCPS School Board Dranesville District Representative Jane Strauss attended the protest along with other school board members to protest the location’s proximity to the elementary school.
“The problem [is that] under Virginia law he legally…can be here,” Strauss said. “Under the laws of Virginia, the local Board of Supervisors may not regulate gun ownership or the location of this shop, which is really too bad.”
Strauss said she is concerned about the store’s potential impact on the school.
“Children learn best in a safe and calm environment,” she said. “I think having a gun store that is visible from their school and their playground does not promote safety and a calm learning environment.”
Not all of the protesters were aware of the protest until seeing it in action.
“I saw some people were here so I wanted to come and help out just because I completely agree there shouldn’t be a gun store right behind a school,” senior Shivani Saboo said.
Nick Perez, a father of two who attended the protest, said he is not opposed to guns themselves, but only the location of the store.
“I think the most important thing is that I’m not out here to protest gun ownership,” Perez said. “We just don’t want it near our schools, near a bank, near a toy store—you know, [we want] smart regulations.”
Gates said he does not think the protest had a significant negative impact on business.
“I think [the protesters] will be drawing more customers than [they are] scaring away,” he said. “Most of our customers don’t care about anyone else’s opinions, to be honest with you. If they want to buy a gun, they are going to buy a gun [and] they won’t let anyone stop them.”
Still, protestors said they hope their efforts will ultimately end in Gates deciding to move the store.
“We would love to have this shop owner decide to use commercial property somewhere other than next to the school,” Strauss said.