Concealed Carry Corner: The Social Side Of Concealed Carry
Welcome back to another edition of Concealed Carry Corner. Last week, we took a look at the growth curve people go through when they start carrying a concealed handgun. If you happened to miss that article, be sure to click the link here to check it out. This week, I thought it would be an interesting perspective to look at what social situations you may have to navigate while carrying a concealed gun. Whether it's family members, a new significant other or strangers out in public, it can sometimes be difficult to know what to do in a given situation, which is what makes sharing experiences a fun part of the carrying community. Let's take a closer look at the social side of concealed carry.
Friends and Family Events
One of the situations that can be the most confrontational is the conversation about carrying a concealed firearm around friends or at a family event. The best policy when it comes to these situations is to carry a gun you can confidently conceal and keep your comments to yourself. There are plenty of families that have certain individuals who don't agree with carrying a concealed handgun and just carrying without saying anything to anyone. If someone does end up seeing your gun accidentally, there will probably be questions about your decisions to carry.
Questions may range from “Why do you need to carry a gun” to “Why are you so afraid” because they simply don't share the same thought process as you. This can be the most personal and frustrating conversation because they are family, which hits personally compared to a random stranger. The important point to keep in mind is the fact that you made your own choice for self-protection and just because it's different from your family, that doesn't mean your perspective is wrong. The absolute best course is to conceal your handgun properly so the conversation is never needed because they don't know you have a handgun concealed on your body.
Starting To Date
Another tough social situation that can get complicated fast is when you go on a first date with someone. This is certainly for my younger crowd, but I’ve personally run into this on past dates. If you meet someone online or have known them for a while, chances are you know how they feel about guns and carrying concealed before going on your initial date. Sometimes you meet people out in public and genuinely have no idea what their personal feelings are towards firearms. I had one date last year where I gave her a hug before we went to dinner in the city. I decided to carry since the city can sometimes be unpredictable once the sun goes down.
As I went to hug her and start a night full of conversation, her hands moved down my side to my waist, where she stopped at my Glock 19. She looked at me with concern in her eyes and I had to explain that I carry a concealed handgun and why I do. We ended up having a nice date, but it's one of the social situations where a harmless hug can create an insanely awkward situation that may end the date before it starts. At the end of the day, you want someone who will accept and support you as you are, so if she doesn't approve of you carrying for self-defense, then it's probably time to look for someone who's a bit more understanding. I wasn't expecting this to turn into dating advice, but I feel this is pretty apparent when looking for your significant other. The main point is to be prepared. They may feel your carry gun and it's never a bad idea to think about what you might say ahead of time.
Strangers In Public
One of the rarest encounters is having to talk with a stranger in public about carrying a concealed handgun, but it's not impossible by any means. Whether it's bending over to pick something up and having your jacket ride up, or you reaching up to the top shelf of a grocery store, you can accidentally show a part of your holster or the frame of your handgun. Things happen and what you have to keep in mind is that the vast majority of the time, people won't notice at all. There have been a couple of times in my life where I’ve seen someone slightly printing in public, but I am always looking as well. The vast majority of people in society flat out don't pay attention to their surroundings. 98% of the time, you have a slight slip and a small part of your gun exposed will go completely unnoticed by anyone.
In the rare moments where someone may see a section of your handgun, it can be anything from a cell phone case to a knife holder, so they won't know for certain exactly what they saw. Usually, a simple nod or smile will defuse the situation and there's absolutely no reason to exchange words. You should never have to exchange words with an individual and if they continue to watch you after a moment where part of your handgun may have been visible, it's always best to move away from the area to defuse the situation and go on with your day. In my 20+ years of carrying, I've never had a single person confront me or call the police because I was carrying a concealed handgun. The point of carrying concealed and if it's being done correctly, you should never have people asking about what's on your body or if you're carrying a handgun. If this does happen, then you need to reevaluate how you carry and improve your ability to conceal a handgun.
Overall Thoughts
There are certain social situations that I still dread to this day. I don't wish the abrasive family talks or first date talks on anyone. They usually lead nowhere good and it's best to deflect and avoid them entirely. When it comes to interacting with the general public should be minimal and if you carry currently, you should never have to have any awkward conversations, but just remember you represent all of the gun community, so your interactions mean more than just representing yourself.
What experiences have you guys had when it comes to social situations with a concealed gun? Leave them down in the comments below. If you have questions about concealed carry or firearms in general, feel free to shoot me a message on Instagram @fridgeoperator. Stay safe out there and we will see you next week for another edition of Concealed Carry Corner.
TFB’s Concealed Carry Corner is brought to you by GLOCK
I'm an avid shooter and love educating whether it's at my job or in the shooting community. I'm an average joe that really loves talking with other people about firearms and other passions.I'm active on Instagram on @fridgeoperator.
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There are a great many more things to consider for CCW. Going to a bar for example is often banned by your IA. How do you explain you can't go with your friends? Or why you are not drinking at all when all your friends aren't. Having to think about what you will wear and whether you will need to take off a jacket or as pointed out in the article, hug someone etc.
As a relatively new CCW, I'm pretty self-concious about my pocket carry being "seen" printing in my pocket, even though it partially covered by a pocket holster. I worry about being confronted by some liberal Karen in the grocery store.
So this article is interesting to me when you mention that a glance by someone is not enough for them to positively identify the object, or that most people are to focused on their own business to even look. The reality for me is, that most people would expect a gun to be much bigger and not recognizing that partial silhouette in my pocket is a small gun. And most prople aren't even giving this old man a second glance.
Carry on!