by Tara Powell

About the author: Tara Powell is a student at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She has written for the Daily Tar Heel, the student newspaper.

In my wallet there is a yellow card stating that in October 1989 I passed the hunter’s education course in Pasquotank County.

Iconfess to not having passed with flying colors. Still, it was a hoop I had to jump through to get out of high school, and I did it.

Yes, that’s right. My hometown requires that no one leave high school without having learned how guns work and how to aim and fire rifles, shotguns and handguns. Though Elizabeth City has some foolish features, this is one area where the system is to be commended.

Growing up in a family where...