Businesses seem to want it both ways. They want to be able to deny legal carriers their right to carry on the premises of their businesses, but they also don't want to advertise that fact until it suits them. This creates many embarrassing situations for carriers when they enter a business, just to be told that they aren't welcome because of an unpublished policy that the business enforces. In Michigan, all that is required of businesses is "reasonable communication." That can be a sign, a warning from an employee who happens to see that you are carrying, or an entry in the employee handbook (for employees), but there is nothing that actually requires them to post a sign to notify you of anything before you enter their premises so that you know beforehand whether you actually want to do business with them - they can drop that little surprise on you whenever it suits them.
So I sent the following to one of the senators with whose office I have been working for quite a while to address firearms issues:
For years, businesses have had the upper hand, and all of the responsibility has fallen on the shoulders of legal carriers to know the policies of every business they enter, whether it has been posted or not. So businesses have been able to keep the carry community guessing.
That needs to stop.
The carry community has jumped through all of the hoops in order to exercise their Second Amendment right to carry; they have been fingerprinted, background checked, taught, tested - and they shelled out the money from their own pockets for the exercise of that right. They DESERVE to know if a business is anti-carry BEFORE THEY ENTER THE PREMISES. Turn about is fair play. And maybe it will also cause some businesses to actually stop and think about whether they truly want to advertise to bad guys that no one will be able to stop them.
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