Gun advocates plan to continue the fine Bay Area tradition of protest this weekend in San Francisco when members of Bay Area Open Carry take advantage of a new federal law allowing firearms in federal parks. On Saturday, the group will meet for a picnic and pick up trash at the Presidio, which is part of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area, one of the most popular destinations in the National Park system.

It is the group’s first San Francisco gathering, according to Jon Schwartz, an organizer with the group.

What are they hoping to achieve beyond creating the odd spectacle of a group of people picking up trash while carrying unloaded guns at an Army post turned national park? “As long as it’s legal for a person to own a gun, you ought to be able to obtain a concealed-carry license,” said Mr. Schwartz, 38, an electrical engineer who lives in Livermore.

It is up to the local police or sheriff’s departments to issue a “concealed carry” permit, which allows a person to carry a loaded, concealed weapon. In 2007, six were issued in San Francisco, 195 in Alameda and 183 in Contra Costa Counties, according to a report [PDF] by the state attorney general’s office. Many of the group’s members say restrictions on permits are unfair to law-abiding citizens and, in general, they hope to raise awareness of constraints on the right to bear arms, said Mr. Schwartz.



In recent weeks, the group, a loosely affiliated bunch that has 1,095 members on Facebook, has made headlines as its members and supporters have shown up at restaurants and coffee shops openly carrying unloaded, holstered weapons, which they are legally permitted to do in many public places under California law. Peet’s Coffee & Tea, California Pizza Kitchen and the Buckhorn Grill have all asked the group not to patronize their businesses while openly carrying a firearm, according to The Contra Costa Times.

Starbucks has allowed Open Carry get-togethers on its premises, prompting the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence to circulate a petition that has gathered more than 27,000 signatures asking Starbucks to prohibit such gatherings. “Espresso Shots. Not Gunshots,” the petition reads.

“It’s a little bit rude,” said Peter Hamm, national communications director for the Brady Campaign. “We get it, we understand that you have this right, now leave the gun in the car, because people are trying to get a cup of coffee.”

Stacey Krum, a Starbucks spokesperson, said in a statement that “the safety of our customers and partners is a paramount concern. We have existing security protocols in place to handle situations related to safety in our stores.”

For Mr. Schwartz, safety is the issue. When more people are able to carry a concealed weapon, “the criminal element that is waiting to prey on the presumed unarmed citizen, that criminal is going to have to think a whole lot harder about who he’s going after,” he said.

The Presidio, meanwhile, will “welcome all visitors and will work within the law to ensure the safety and comfort of everyone who comes” to the park, said Dana Polk, a spokeswoman with the Presidio Trust, which manages the park.

“As long as the weapon is unloaded, they can travel to the event,” said Lt. Lyn Tomioka, a spokeswoman with the San Francisco Police Department spokesperson in an e-mail message. “Guns can scare people and if we get calls of that nature, for the public and officer safety reasons, we will treat that weapon as loaded until determined otherwise.”

How police officers really feel about the Open Carry protests became an issue this month, when an East Palo Alto officer’s joke on his personal Facebook page seemed to imply that he might shoot Open Carry members.

“Quite honestly I feel a little unsafe going to East Palo Alto right now,” Adnan Shahab, who goes out in public displaying an unloaded gun on his belt, told KTVU.