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Gun advocate Phil Evans says Live Nation should release a statement to take the blame off of him.
Evans told GPB's Peter Biello, host of All Things Considered, that he's getting threats now that people think he was the main reason Music Midtown and 404 Fest cancelled the events. "Perhaps Live Nation will issue a statement completely exonerating me as being responsible for their decision to cancel the festival," he told the host.
Both event where very vague in the reasons for cancelling the events. MM just said that due to recent gun laws (allowing people to carry without a permit in public places), they weren't going to be able to keep guns out of the festival.
Evans has been advocating for being able to bring his weapon to the event for several years now. He told event coordinators that he will absolutely sue if he is stopped or denied his right to carry in Piedmont Park during the Festival. He told GPB that he never wanted the event to be cancelled, he just wanted his rights to not be violated and the festival to allow him in.
In the interview Evans said, "I wish that they had done the exact same thing that the Sweetwater 420 Festival did in 2018....when I brought that up with the GWCC, the attorney emailed me back and he said, "I'll take care of it." And sure enough, they changed their website. They changed the word "weapons" to "illegal weapons," meaning they now allow lawful carry."
Evans claims that the event coordinators have had time to find a private venue and that this law has actually been in effect since 2014, the later clarified in 2019 by the GA Supreme Court. He even reached out in 2020 about his rights at the event. "They can't say they were blindsided. They had two and a half years at least to get their act together and to find private property," he told GPB's Peter Biello.
Governor Kemp did sign a new law in April that gives the ability for Georgian's to carry legal firearms without a permit. This law seems to have changed the game with events in public places.
Evans says that there are a few private concert venues holding concerts he wants to see this year, so he may be considering challenging their ability to deny his right to protect himself.
Live Nation hasn't commented directly on Mr. Evans or their plans for future events like these.