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PHILADELPHIA (CBS) — Gun violence in Philadelphia is leading to the explosion of a new group of gun owners: women. Last year, more women applied for portering permits than men in the city.
Some firearms experts call it unprecedented.
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A group of women gun owners have struck up a friendship after crossing paths at the Delaware Valley Sports Center in northeast Philadelphia a few months ago.
“I don’t know too many women personally who come to the range,” Deborah Kucowski said.
Brenda Adams says that when the women met, they “all hit it off really well.”
The women refer to themselves as Terry’s Angels, named after their firearms instructor Terrance Lappe, who taught Philadelphia police officers how to shoot.
Meet Terry’s Angels – a group of three women who recently started taking firearms safety courses. They are part of a growing number of women arming themselves pic.twitter.com/Rr6IKdi1p8
— Matt Petrillo (@MattPetrillo) June 17, 2022
“I literally taught thousands of police officers how to shoot and now civilians,” Lappe said.
Terry’s angels are among a growing number of women Lappe has seen in his classes in recent years.
Data shows that of the 70,790 haul license applications in Philadelphia last year, women made up just over half of them @CBSPhilly pic.twitter.com/8KxHL9fE4Y
— Matt Petrillo (@MattPetrillo) June 17, 2022
Many of her female clients say they are learning to shoot because of the increase in crime in the city.
“The carjackings, the murders, that scared me,” Adams said. “I’ve lived in Philadelphia for almost 64 years and I’ve never seen anything like it. That’s why I carry a gun.
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Philadelphia set a grim new record for homicides in 2021, with more than 560 deaths.
In the same year, the number of Philadelphia transport license applications jumped to over 70,000, far more than in previous years.
Eyewitness News also found that more women made up these nominations, just over half.
“I just want to be able to protect myself and my family,” Kucowski said.
The push comes as a new bill introduced in Congress would encourage Americans to enroll in firearms lessons.
“You shouldn’t be able to buy a gun without any type of training,” Lappe said. “There should be training to go with it.”
Now, these women plan to continue their apprenticeship.
“How to load your gun, how to fire your gun, everything,” Sherry Coulter said.
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Nationally, a recent Harvard study shows that women accounted for half of all gun purchases between 2019 and 2021. In recent years, black women have emerged as the group of gun owners fastest growing in the country, according to the National African American Gun Association.
