Trader Joe’s Policy in the Crosshairs
The gun-control group Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America is pushing forward with their campaign against grocery stores that have a neutral or pro-gun policies when it comes to customers who carry. The group has targeted Trader Joe’s on a national level along with groceries on local levels.
The group has repeatedly petitioned grocery stores and restaurant chains, sometimes successfully, to adopt or make public existing anti-gun policies. These businesses include Albertsons, Chipotle, Chili’s, Jack in the Box, Safeway, Starbucks, and Target. They have also attempted to restrict pro-gun groups on social media including Facebook and Instagram.
Recently Moms Demand announced that they were involved with a no-open-carry policy adopted by Trader Joe’s in Texas and are now asking that the rest of the stores across the country adopt the same policy.
“In many parts of our country, customers can still shop for pot-stickers and Joe-Joe’s cookies at Trader Joe’s side by side with someone openly carrying a loaded firearm,” said group spokeswoman Shannon Watts. “We are asking Trader Joe’s to take its Texas gun sense policy nationwide by prohibiting the open carry of firearms at all its stores.”
See Also: Kroger CFO on Moms Demand Action’s Protests: ‘We Follow Local Laws’
The Bloomberg-affiliated group, part of Everytown for Gun Safety, hasn’t always succeeded at changing store policy. The gun control group saw a major loss after it was rejected by Kroger last year. Kroger, the country’s largest supermarket chain, maintains a policy to follow all local gun laws including those that protect open- and concealed-carry.
“If the local gun laws are to allow open carry, we’ll certainly allow customers to do that based on what the local laws are,” said Kroger CFO Michael Schlotman in response to Moms Demand’s petition. “We don’t believe it’s up to us to legislate what the local gun control laws should be. It’s up to the local legislators to decide to do that.”
“So we follow local laws [and] we ask our customers to be respectful to the other people they are shopping with,” he continued. “And we really haven’t had any issues inside of our stores as a result of that.”
The group is currently working in Connecticut to try to flip Kroger policy on a state level, although it’s not clear if they will see any great success there.
“[The] Connecticut Food Association is actually leading that dialogue with our members, they will make decisions based on what’s best for their businesses,” Wayne Pesce, the association’s president, reports Fox News.
In the past Moms Demand Action has taken credit for some store policies asking customers not to bring their guns into their stores, even when those stores already had no-carry policies in place. Safeway, for example, is one chain that did not employ their gun policy in response to a Moms Demand petition — they already had one in place.
I’m a CCH holder, but I have to say open carry is about the dumbest thing a person could do.
When any individual you pass could be a criminal, why advertise the fact that you have a gun? To give them the opportunity to disarm you first?
Keep them guessing just like they keep us guessing……..carry concealed!
Sometimes you have to tell Mom to shut up. Seems she is getting senile.
When if first (mis)read the title, I thought it said “Moms Demand Action Targets AT Trader Joe’s” and I got all excited….
If you really want to fight this, don’t write here, go to Trader Joe’s website and tell THEM what you think. I’m headed there now…
I follow the local laws when I conceal carry. If I see the appropriate state sanctioned no weapon sign on the door I respect the policy and don’t enter into the business. If the business doesn’t respect our constitutional rights then I don’t do business with them.
Couldn’t anti-gun laws be overturned by filing a class-action suit against local and State governmental entities, based on a violation of civil rights?
Why are these pin heads from Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America allowed to print ‘Will you stand with ALL moms’ ALL MOMS. Total bull crap.
I carried in Trader Joe’s last night and no one died. I must have a defective firearm.
Nothing new here and someone else said it also. The Democrats/Socialists/Marxists/Leninists/Communists/Authoritarians want to impose their idea of a utopia on the rest of the nation. They know that to fully realize their ideal country (think USSR, China, Venezuela, etc.) that they MUST have a complete prohibition on civilian ban of gun ownership. If Socialist ideas are so good why do they need to impose them on us?
The 2nd Amendment says: “………..arms shall not be infringed”. Let’s stick with the Constitution!
In the united Socialist Republic of Massachusetts we can’t open carry or we risk losing her license entirely even though there’s really no restriction on open carry on the books. That said I conceal carry everywhere that is not prohibited by state law. Businesses can post no firearms sometimes but they have no legal authority and all they can do is ask you to leave. If you don’t leave then you could be charged with trespassing. This MOMS group is a fraud, last count didn’t they have like 30 members?
Anybody that believes that it is ‘MOMS’ that are doing this is grossly uninformed. It is part of the progressive agenda to disarm the American people and move the balance of power to the government in violation of the Second Amendment. They need to rename themselves ‘Disarm America’ so that everyone knows their real intent. Using the ‘Mom’s Demand Action’ handle is no different than ISIS calling themselves ‘Christians Demand Action’ so that the uninformed go along with them.
Lets start a petition to ban Yoga Pants on women in public. Continued viewing can cause irreparable damage to the optic nerve!!!!
Don’t forget the irreparable damage to your sex life and digestive system and thus your marriage.
Don’t forget the damage they women to do your sex lives digestive systems and ultimately your marriages.
What they don’t know won’t hurt them. Don’t ask don’t tell?
Been to Krogers in different towns/states and the only people i’ve seen carrying are LEOs. Another attack on the 2nd Amendment from a slightly different front- the Momunist Movement.
I’ve been OCing exclusively for the past 16-18 months. Kroger, Banks, Target, WalMart and even Kroger’s closest competitor, Public, and haven’t had the first issue from my fellow citizens. In fact, I OC everywhere – not just those places listed above – and the only comment I got was a compliment from a sales associate of ~ “That is a very nice looking 1911”! I was OCing my (then new to me) Ruger Lightweight Commander and we had a nice little talk about it.
I’m glad to report that I’m seeing an uptick in OC in my area (West Ga) as well as I see at least one OCer in a lot of the stores I visit.
How about they pass legislation that Liberals are not permitted to reproduce without first taking a class on rights and responsibilities. Their narrow minded misguided analyzing of just about everything is very misconstrued. They do not appear to be happy about anything but deeply enjoy confusion and are deeply engrossed in causes that normal folks could care less about. They seem to be missing out on enjoyment in life in America. They loose big time.
That mom’s group is living in a media hype liberal world. I applaud Kroger’s management and wish we had their stores here in central Pennsylvania.
Target as I have stated many times does not stand by that No Gun Policy, Call their offices, This was done to shut up the naysayers.
The local Target store where I shop has NO Signs prohibiting Guns
Walmart is the same,but I carry where ever I go.if there is a sign no wepon I don’t shop there anymore.
I applaud the Kroger CEO for his stand on the open carry law in Texas but I should remind him that in reality local gun laws are an infringement on the second amendment. All local laws that restrain the second are unconstitutional and when you look at the FBI stats if they are indeed correct then we need to outlaw baseball bats because they appear to be more deadly than guns.
It should also be noted the states and cities with the most gun related deaths are run by democrat liberals with the most stringent gun control measures on the books. I find it ironic that the liberals scream the loudest about and against guns have the worst record. They too by the way are Godless and rudderless.
How bout these “moms” wear a label stating who they are so if something goes down in any of these places we can choose not to help them . They are so against our 2A rights in their little cult I’m sure they don;t want our help anyway so that would solve that problem of these women who live in a fantasy world .ΜΟΛΩΝ ΛΑΒΕ
These are the same class of people as the slave owners of their party before them.
Don’t these people have their own lives to live? What makes them think that they can dictate to me how I live my life? If I can’t carry in a place of business, I don’t support that business. Here in Michigan you have to post a notice on the door that guns aren’t allowed. I see a sign, I turn around and go somewhere else. Get over yourselves or get counciling. LEAVE OUR RIGHTS ALONE!!!!!!!!!!!