It all depends on your point of view.
On Thursday, the same day that President Obama gave an emotional speech on gun violence to the nation, with several members of Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America appearing on the stage with him, a local chapter of the group joined an Indianapolis rally sponsored by the Mayors Against Illegal Guns Coalition.
Sharing the spotlight outside the Indiana statehouse, though, were members of a counter-demonstration, armed with AR-15 semi-automatic weapons in full view. Loaded, of course. As one man told WTHR News, “Any weapon that is not loaded is just a rock or a club.”
Indiana Moms Against Gun Control had put out an “urgent” message on its Facebook page after creating an event inviting people to a counter-demonstration against Moms Demand Action.
Although the Indianapolis Star covered the event, the gun-toting protesters were mentioned only in a photo caption and a video accompanying the online story. The text focused on Moms Demand Action and their request for universal background checks on all gun purchases.