But this year there was a vital detail offered that differed greatly from years past.
“The fair has an updated weapons policy, moving forward,” said Jeff Cotner, the fair's director of security. “The State Fair of Texas, as a private, not-for-profit organization, prohibits fairgoers from carrying all firearms.”
There’s a simple reason for this new gun policy. Last year, three people were wounded when a man fired his gun in the Tower Building food court on a crowded Saturday night. No one was killed, but a park-wide hunt for the shooter resulted in the fair being closed early that night as video circulating on social media painted a chaotic picture of frantic throngs scurrying when shots were fired.
Until now, the fair’s policy has been to allow licensed gun holders, as well as law enforcement officials, to take firearms into the fair. But not this year. Only peace officers will be permitted to take weapons into the park and into Cotton Bowl Stadium.
The third-floor media room inside the Cotton Bowl may have been relatively quiet at that point on Thursday, but shortly after, the sound of gun-loving hearts breaking could be heard from El Paso to Texarkana.
Fox 4 reported on the change shortly after the press conference, and folks on X wasted no time in expressing their displeasure.
“I thought this was the Texas State Fair, not the California State Fair,” wrote one X user, while another one added “what is this Nazi germany …”
Guns will not be allowed inside the State Fair of Texas this year. https://t.co/KzYkjYYgBJ
— FOX 4 NEWS (@FOX4) August 8, 2024
Of course, there was a cascade of people stating they would not be attending the fair this year, so maybe those who do go will enjoy shorter lines for coupons and cotton candy bacon.
Others on X seemed to think fewer people packing heat will mean the fair will somehow be less safe in 2024.
“Great idea, let’s make the patrons easier to rob on their way out of the fair. Brilliant!” wrote one unhappy X user. Another added, “Make everyone an easy target. Great plan. Conceal and protect yourselves.”
In a development more predictable than the fair opting to tighten gun rules the year after a shooting occurred on its grounds, conservative state Rep. Briscoe Cain chimed in on the Fox 4 post with “Contact the @StateFairOfTX and demand they reverse this dangerous policy.”
Nor is he the only legislator pissed about this new rule. On Monday, more than 70 Texas lawmakers signed a letter pleading with the fair to reverse course.
I stand with my colleagues in opposing the State Fair of Texas’ gun ban. Seventy signatures strong! Gun-free zones don’t make us safer—they make us targets. Texans have the right to defend themselves. #2A #txlege #NRA #GOA @TXGunRights @TSRA_outreach pic.twitter.com/FmkM0EGsAR
— Dustin Burrows (@Burrows4TX) August 12, 2024
“The Texas Legislature has repeatedly enhanced Texans’ Second Amendment rights, but your actions raise questions about the need for legislation next Session to further protect these rights on lands managed by the public,” the letter reads in part.
North Texas legislators who signed the letter included Rep. Kronda Thimesch, Rep. Nate Schatzline, Sen. Mayes Middleton and Rep. Jeff Leach.
In a statement provided to the Observer on Tuesday morning, Karissa Condoianis, the fair's senior vice president of public relations, noted that the fair has received "both criticism and praise" for the change in policy and that the fair has long been a supporter of the rights of responsible gun owners, but that additional steps were needed.
"It has been suggested that this decision makes the State Fair a 'gun free' zone and therefore less safe than before. We disagree with this suggestion," Condoianis wrote. "The State Fair has adopted a similar policy to that of most mass community gathering events like athletic competitions, concerts, and other Fairs throughout the state and across the nation. The State Fair of Texas spends millions of dollars per year on safety and security measures. Furthermore, the Dallas Police Department has a substation at Fair Park. A combined total of more than 200 uniformed and armed DPD officers and State Fair Safety Team members are patrolling the fairgrounds whenever the gates are open. We take the safety of the State Fair very seriously and will continue to do so."
