Anyone who can legally purchase a firearm should have a firearm if they want one. I really think everyone should have a gun, to be fair, but some people don’t want one for some reason and I respect their right to make that decision for themself. It’s not my place to infringe on someone’s right to make their own decisions, after all.

Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, millions of people have changed their minds about owning guns. This is, ultimately, a good thing. More guns on the streets in law-abiding citizens’ hands translate to less crime. It also makes it a bit less likely that anti-gunners will ultimately get their way on guns.

This is especially true when some of those buying guns are among a key demographic for Democrats.

After overhearing constant racist and anti-immigrant comments made by his neighbors, Tony Martinez said he knew he needed to find a way to feel safer.

He bought his first rifle last month, joined a gun club and has been visiting shooting ranges in Southern California on the weekends.

“It’s more for me to be safe from them,” Martinez, 31, told CNN, referring to his neighbors in his Orange County community. “What if one day something happens, someone gets some idea?”

Martinez is not the only Latino immigrant in the U.S. who has recently felt more concerned for his safety — last year’s shooting at the Cielo Vista Walmart store in El Paso jolted Latinos and immigrants across the United States. Twenty three people died and nearly two dozen more were injured in what is considered one of the nation’s deadliest shootings and the deadliest attack on Latinos in modern U.S. history.

Authorities said the suspected shooter drove to El Paso with the sole intent of killing immigrants and Mexicans in the West Texas border city. In February, he was indicted on 90 federal charges, including hate crimes, according to court documents.

Even before the mass shooting, the number of hate crimes targeting Latino or Hispanic people increased in 2018 and the previous four years, according to data from the FBI’s annual Hate Crime Statistics report.

And there’s no excuse for that kind of crap. None.

The truth of the matter is that if you believe you may be targeted by people for any reason, it just makes sense to arm yourself and try to protect you and your family from such an attack. It’s not rocket science. The worst-case scenario is really that it doesn’t dissuade anyone from anything and you have to actually pull the trigger. A lot.

While I can’t speak for everyone, I’d really much rather head into the afterlife with a pile of spent brass at my feet and some company rather than just passively wait to be murdered.

The Hispanic community getting armed actually makes a great deal of sense. As we saw in El Paso, there are those who are taking what originally was anti-illegal immigrant rhetoric and applying it to everyone who comes from another country. Most people have no issue with legal immigrants–I welcome them with open arms, actually. One of my closest friends is an immigrant, after all–some have gone off the deep end.

If you’re worried about being targeted then get armed, get trained, and be prepared.