Shooter

The gun culture that Myers presents is not the one where people in bad neighborhoods buy pistols to protect their homes or farmers own rifles to put down sick animals. Myers presents a militarized gun culture—racists dressed in fatigues and weapons traffickers selling to underage boys. In his interview with Lash, Cameron describes buying a Galil gun from a man at the Patriot’s shooting range: “They’re not like target shooters. They’re more like military people—soldiers, I guess” (90).

Len’s father, whom Len quotes making racist remarks in his diary, introduces him to the range. As a Black kid visiting the range, Cameron admits that the incident with Dr. King’s picture bothered him. He tells Special Agent Lash: “I knew that some of the people at the range were probably racists. I knew that. They talked about being patriots and loving their country, but I knew that what they meant was loving the images they had of their country. I knew that” (75).

Cameron says he would have no problem buying in AK-47 if he had the money. He would simply go to a gun show and “look around for guys wearing combat gear” (91). At first, Cameron dismisses Lash’s suggestion that he and Len viewed a gun as an “equalizer” to the school bullies (91).