HareTigger
Regular Member
Below is my letter to Powell's Books in Portland. I am RATHER annoyed with how they treat open carriers, but am so close to the event that I would appreciate objective comments on what I've written before I send it. THANKS!
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I was in Powell's City of Books on Saturday, intending to spend money there as I ALWAYS do when I travel to Portland. I usually spend hundreds of dollars while there. However, your treatment of another customer has left me with a bad taste in my mouth and my money still in my pocket. I am now considering whether or not I should ever return to your store.
The situation was that this other customer was carrying a pistol in a holster on his side, something that is perfectly legal anywhere in the State of Oregon, including Portland. I know this because I have an Oregon Concealed Handgun License. As a single female, for my safety, I always carry a pistol on my person and was carrying concealed that day. I also always appreciate seeing open carriers because they are KNOWN to deter crime. The only difference between the way I was carrying and that gentleman, is that you had NO IDEA that I had a loaded pistol in your store. One of your clerks called the police on the other customer, treating him as a criminal even though he was not behaving in a hostile manner, as per the call that was issued by the police dispatcher. I know this because I heard him say something to that effect to the woman he was with. They then replaced the books they had selected to purchase and calmly left the store.
I realize that as a private business you have the right to refuse service to anyone you wish, but in line with your Community page and your commitment “to the strength of a well-informed community” and support of “civil rights causes”, you might want to pull the following book off your own shelf and not only read it but train your employees as well: “Understanding Oregons Gun Laws Updated” by Kevin Starrett, ISBN13: 9780977493920 and ISBN10: 097749392x. You might want to hurry as you have only one left in stock. The books is apparently quite popular. It probably wouldn't hurt to refresh your knowledge of our Constitution and the civil right that follows the first amendment: the right to keep and bear arms.
Not only did you lose those sales that day, but you may have lost all of my future business. I can guarantee that I will share this experience with every person I know who respects individual rights. Had you simply asked that gentleman to leave your store, I would have been less offended though still pondering any need to spend my money with you. As it is, I found that your company has now been listed on the friendorfoe.us web page. Whether it remains there as a foe or reverses that negative and becomes a friend, is up to you.
Is it your company's policy to infringe upon the civil rights of citizens simply because it makes other people uncomfortable? Is it your store policy to discriminate? Or do you simply choose to employ people who are ignorant of our Constitutionally protected rights as American citizens?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I was in Powell's City of Books on Saturday, intending to spend money there as I ALWAYS do when I travel to Portland. I usually spend hundreds of dollars while there. However, your treatment of another customer has left me with a bad taste in my mouth and my money still in my pocket. I am now considering whether or not I should ever return to your store.
The situation was that this other customer was carrying a pistol in a holster on his side, something that is perfectly legal anywhere in the State of Oregon, including Portland. I know this because I have an Oregon Concealed Handgun License. As a single female, for my safety, I always carry a pistol on my person and was carrying concealed that day. I also always appreciate seeing open carriers because they are KNOWN to deter crime. The only difference between the way I was carrying and that gentleman, is that you had NO IDEA that I had a loaded pistol in your store. One of your clerks called the police on the other customer, treating him as a criminal even though he was not behaving in a hostile manner, as per the call that was issued by the police dispatcher. I know this because I heard him say something to that effect to the woman he was with. They then replaced the books they had selected to purchase and calmly left the store.
I realize that as a private business you have the right to refuse service to anyone you wish, but in line with your Community page and your commitment “to the strength of a well-informed community” and support of “civil rights causes”, you might want to pull the following book off your own shelf and not only read it but train your employees as well: “Understanding Oregons Gun Laws Updated” by Kevin Starrett, ISBN13: 9780977493920 and ISBN10: 097749392x. You might want to hurry as you have only one left in stock. The books is apparently quite popular. It probably wouldn't hurt to refresh your knowledge of our Constitution and the civil right that follows the first amendment: the right to keep and bear arms.
Not only did you lose those sales that day, but you may have lost all of my future business. I can guarantee that I will share this experience with every person I know who respects individual rights. Had you simply asked that gentleman to leave your store, I would have been less offended though still pondering any need to spend my money with you. As it is, I found that your company has now been listed on the friendorfoe.us web page. Whether it remains there as a foe or reverses that negative and becomes a friend, is up to you.
Is it your company's policy to infringe upon the civil rights of citizens simply because it makes other people uncomfortable? Is it your store policy to discriminate? Or do you simply choose to employ people who are ignorant of our Constitutionally protected rights as American citizens?
