This will be brief, as I am trying to find more information. But I wanted to get this out. It has been reported that the group Open Carry Texas is planning on bringing black powder guns to the Texas Republican Convention in Fort Worth this week. They have. And they got in.
I work in downtown Fort Worth and figured I would see the Open Carry Parade at some point. Well, today while walking to my car past the convention hall I saw two men with side arms fishing around in the back of an SUV. Both were wearing 'Open Carry Texas" shirts. Of course I had thrown my cellphone in my backpack, and I didn't want to try to dig it out on the spot. Instead, I walked up to them casually and asked,
"Hey man, I thought they weren't letting you guys in this year."
The older of the two said, "We've already been in."
To which I replied, "Right on. So all that stuff on the news was bullshit?"
The younger of the two said that they had found a loop hole, black powder pistols.
The first gentleman started rambling about TABC signs and long guns, and how they were in already so it wasn't going to stop them.
The younger guy nodded and then they closed up the SUV, ready to head back in. At this point, having been completely caught off guard, I just told them both to have a nice day and left.
I must admit, I had planned on taking pictures of a bunch of gun wielding protesters outside the hall later this week. This I did not expect.
So there you have it, Open Carry Texas is already in the convention hall.