East Bay Women Establish Gun Group
Photo courtesy of East Bay Gun Club
A new gun club in the East Bay is inviting women to join to learn about firearms and how to protect and defend themselves and their families.
This past Saturday, more than 100 women signed up to attend a meeting at an undisclosed Bay Area gun range as part of the East Bay Women’s Gun Group. The private group, organized by Castro Valley resident Kristina Marie, allowed those women attending to shoot at the range as well as to establish introductory and beginners’ classes for those new to firearms.
Membership is open to women only. Locations are known only to members to protect their anonymity. Classes are taught by certified instructors who donate their time. Kristina says she hopes the Gun Group will empower other women to learn about firearms and how to protect and defend themselves and their families.
“I got into shooting about 3 years ago and moved to Castro Valley approximately 6 months ago,” Kristina told the Forum. “I’ve taken a number of classes in both Santa Cruz County as well as a CCW [concealed carry weapon] class here in Alameda County, and one thing that remained consistent was the lack of women in classes, as well as the lack of female perspective of the instructors giving the classes.”
Statistically, women make up only 1 in 5 or 22% percent of gun owners in the United States, according to a 2017 Pew Research Center survey of 1,269 gun owners. The survey also found that women who own guns tend to become gun owners at a later age than men. On average, women who own a gun or have owned one in the past report that they first got their own gun when they were 27 years old, compared with an average of 19 for men who own or have owned guns. Women are also more likely than men to cite protection—rather than recreation—as the only reason they own a gun.
Kristina says she was often the only female in her classes. It became glaringly apparent to her that when instructors teach courses, they focus more on the men than the women.
“The resounding response from women I talk to about this is, ‘I really want to learn how to shoot, but I’m intimidated to take group classes, go to the range by myself, or I’m terrified even to handle a firearm,’” she said.
The East Bay Women’s Gun Group started about three months ago. Kristina said she posted about establishing the Group on a local NextDoor.com site and got 220 replies in the first 24 hours, most of which were from women wanting to join or support the Group.
“Initially, I was just looking for other women to take classes with and practice at the range with because I’ve seen so few of them in my own training,” Kristina said. “After reading many of the comments, I realized that many women were interested but had never been exposed to handling a firearm or any type of training and desperately wanted a point of connection.”
The Gun Group offers access to a 4 to 5-hour introductory beginners’ course that goes. It’s offered at a significantly discounted rate as all certified trainers are donating their time, Kristina said. “As the group grows, she says the Group will offer additional courses that build upon the skills they’ve already gained.
And while the interest in the Group is growing, the availability of local ranges has presented some obstacles. The Chabot Gun Club, a fixture at Anthony Chabot Regional Park for more than 52 years, closed in 2016.
“It’s been challenging to find ranges to utilize as well as companies that want to open up classes for an all-women’s group,” Kristina said. “I’ve been very fortunate to find a group of trainers as well as a range that wants to help serve the community and allow women to access a safe space for learning together.”
Women interested in joining a gun club and getting together to learn how to shoot and safely handle a firearm are encouraged to sign up on the East Bay Women’s Gun Group Meetup page (Meetup.com/east-bay-womens-gun-group).