Why gun ownership is spiking among this demographic
Gun ownership on the rise as women seek to 'protect ourselves the same
way men have been doing for years'
Hannah Ray LambertBy Hannah Ray Lambert | Fox News

PROTECT OURSELVES LIKE MEN: Why this demographic is quickly arming up
Women are among the fastest-growing group of gun owners in the country.
Fox News Digital visited an all-female firearm training to find out why
they're arming up.

UNIVERSITY PLACE, Wash. – Jessica McCoy wiped rain droplets off her
safety goggles before sitting down at the firing line. She picked up the
Daniel Defense AR-15 and spent a minute navigating the scope before
finally pulling the trigger, releasing a burst of sound that
reverberated across the rifle range.

"Did I even hit the target?" she asked instructor Jane Milhans, who
replied, "We'll go see later."

McCoy had never fired a semiautomatic rifle before that drizzly morning
at an all-female firearm training just outside Tacoma, Washington. But
like many women, she has decided to get more comfortable using a gun for
personal protection.

Firearms instructor helps woman aim AR-15 at outdoor rifle range
Instructor Jane Milhans shows Jessica McCoy how to shoot an AR-15 at a
rifle range near Tacoma, Washington. McCoy signed up for a beginner
firearm safety class with the goal of becoming more comfortable around
guns. (Hannah Ray Lambert/Fox News Digital)

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WEAPONS' BAN: 'NO ONE NEEDS AN AR-15'

"Women are the fastest-growing group of gun owners in America," Milhans
told Fox News.

In 2016, 15% of women reported owning a gun, according to Gallup. That
figure swelled to 22% last year, the highest level since Gallup started
tracking American firearm ownership annually in 2007. Men are still more
likely to own a firearm than women, but their rates of gun ownership
have remained stagnant — around 40% — over the last decade and a half.

Milhans, who serves on the board of the Washington State Rifle and
Pistol Association, donates about 100 hours each year specifically
training other women to use firearms.

"This class is a very beginners safety class," she said. "It's ideal for
the person who's afraid to shoot."

Students spend a couple hours in the classroom going over firearm safety
and asking questions, then head out to the range to practice shooting
rifles and pistols.

"Quite honestly, [guns] make me nervous," McCoy told Fox News. "You
always hear about the accidents, of course little kids getting shot at.
It's, to me, very intimidating. And so I want to be more comfortable
handling them."

PROTECT OURSELVES LIKE MEN — WHY WOMEN ARE ARMING UP:
PROTECT OURSELVES LIKE MEN: Why this demographic is quickly arming upVideo
WATCH MORE FOX NEWS DIGITAL ORIGINALS HERE

McCoy is married to a law enforcement officer, but estimates they've
gone shooting one time as a couple in the past 11 years. She feels safe
when her husband is home but worries about her own ability to protect
herself and their children when he's away, especially with the rise in
violent crime in Washington.

"When he is gone," McCoy said, "I don't have that that comfort and
reassurance of someone that knows how to actively handle a gun and
protect me from an intruder or someone who wants to harm us."

She's not alone: Women are more likely than men to cite protection as
the sole reason they own a gun, according a Pew Research Center survey.

Chart showing a bigger percentage of women reported owning firearms in
2022 than six years prior
The percent of women who own a firearm increased 7% from 2016 to 2022,
according to Gallup surveys. Mens' firearm ownership rates have remained
stagnant over the same period. (Ramiro Vargas/Fox News Digital)

WASHINGTON BUSINESS OWNERS FED UP WITH CRIME TURN TO THE SECOND
AMENDMENT FOR PROTECTION

Lisa Olson took coming face-to-face with a suspected car prowler as her
sign to enroll in the firearms training course.

One night she parked her car in her driveway in a quiet suburb outside
Tacoma. Her son ran into the house, but Olson remained in the car
finishing a phone call when suddenly another car pulled up next to her
and a man opened the passenger door.

"We're just looking at each other," she recalled. "He had an excuse that
he thought it was his girlfriend's car and her house and I said, ‘Well
she doesn’t live here.' And then he got into the car and drove off."

Later, she would learn from neighbors with security cameras that two men
had been breaking into cars.

"What can I do [against] two men?" Olson said. "Being a woman and not as
strong, we need something a little stronger to help protect us."

Woman looks through scope on a bolt-action rifle at a gun range near
Tacoma, Washington
A woman learns to shoot a bolt-action rifle at a range near Tacoma,
Washington. Women are one of the fastest growing demographics of gun
owners in America, according to polling and industry surveys. (Hannah
Ray Lambert/Fox News Digital)

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McCoy said criminals view women as a "sitting duck."

"We're saying, ‘No, absolutely not,’" she said. "We're going to take
matters into our own hands and protect ourselves the same way men have
been doing for years.'"

To see more of the firearms training, click here.

Ramiro Vargas contributed to the accompanying video.

Hannah Ray Lambert is an associate producer/writer with Fox News Digital
Originals.

On Sun, 7 May 2023 20:37:11 -0700, a425couple <a425couple@hotmail.com>
wrote:

>UNIVERSITY PLACE, Wash. – Jessica McCoy wiped rain droplets off her
>safety goggles before sitting down at the firing line. She picked up the
>Daniel Defense AR-15 and spent a minute navigating the scope before
>finally pulling the trigger, releasing a burst of sound that
>reverberated across the rifle range.

She should train with a handgun. You can't whip out an AR-15 in your
kitchen or a bedroom if an intruder kicks in your front door. A .38
revolver will stop any intruder in their tracks.

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