Joe Salazar: Colorado Lawmaker Apologizes For Rape Comments

Colorado Democrat Joe Salazar apologized about his rape and guns remarks. Salazar stated during a speech that women did not need a gun in their purse to protect themselves from rapists on a college campus. The Democrat suggested instead that women should go to “safe zones” and use a whistle or call box when they feel as if they are being stalked.

Joe Salazar’s rape comments drew a plethora of backlash across party lines on Monday. A video of the Colorado Democrat discussing rape during a gun control debate has gone viral. The representatives were debating Colorado House Bill 1226 which would outlaw concealed carry permits, the Denver Post reports.

During his time at the podium, the Democrat noted that frightened women could misidentify someone as a possible attacker and shoot the wrong person. An excerpt from Salazar’s now infamous rape and guns speech republished by the Washington Times reads:

“It’s why we have call boxes, it’s why we have safe zones, it’s why we have the whistles. Because you just don’t know who you’re gonna be shooting at. And you don’t know if you feel like you’re gonna be raped, or if you feel like someone’s been following our around or if you feel like you’re in trouble when you may actually not be, that you pop out that gun and you pop … pop a round a somebody.”

In the apology Joe Salazar issued on Tuesday, he noted that the governing body was having a discussion about guns making students safer on campus. The Colorado Democrat stated clearly that he does not feel a gun would make college campuses safer. Joe Salazar also noted that he is a husband and father of two daughters and has spent a decade defending women’s rights.

Would you rather your daughter have a gun in her purse to defend herself, or be forced to rely on a safe zone and call boxes?

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