Real Housewives of Atlanta Are Proudly Armed Black Women

The Real Housewives of Atlanta — “Reunion” — Pictured: (l-r) Cynthia Bailey, Kenya Moore, Kandi Burruss, Andy Cohen, Phaedra Parks, Porsha Williams, Sheree Whitfield. (Photo: Annette Brown/Bravo)

So, I was watching the Real Housewives of Atlanta (RHA) the other day… don’t judge, if you have a wife or girlfriend under the age of 40 chances are she watches one of the many Real Housewives franchises on Bravo TV, which means you get stuck watching it too!

But yeah, so I was watching RHA S.9 Reunion Part I the other day and the subject of gun ownership came up during the show.

Andy Cohen, the host and producer of the show, mentioned an incident involving “housewife” Kenya (who is not actually married, incidentally) where she drew a firearm on several would-be home intruders. More on that in a moment, but Cohen then asked all the other “housewives” present (come to think of it, I think Kandi is the only one who is currently married, the others are either divorced or perennially single, #Shade) if they, too, owned firearms.

The result was rather surprising, or maybe it wasn’t if you know the tenacity and temerity of these ladies, but the majority of women on the stage (I think all but Sheree, if I remember correctly) raised a hand to acknowledge that they own guns and one, the newly divorced Cynthia, even mentioned wanting to obtain her pistol permit.

Very interesting, I thought. These accomplished and independent black women (Cynthia, Kenya, Kandi, Phaedra, Porsha, Sheree) get it. They understand what many reality stars and movie stars do not. That the individual is ultimately responsible for the safety of herself and her family. Given this, the most rational action is to exercise one’s right to keep and bear arms.

I then looked around to see if any of those Celebrity gossip rags had covered this aspect of the show. To my chagrin, no one addressed it in any meaningful way. The closest I found to any mention was on Vulture.com, where the writer said the following, “Kenya drew a gun on some intruders and Andy asks if anyone else has a gun. YEAH, THEY GOT GUNS, ANDY. Anyone could have told you that.”

Apparently the fact that these women are proud gun owners is common knowledge, though, as someone who has seen more than a few episodes I can’t remember it coming up before on the show. I know, I know, you’re probably shaking your head saying, What the heck, who cares! Why are you even talking about RHA on a GunsAmerica News and Reviews?

The answer is because — and to circle back to the recent incident involving Kenya — at least one of these women have been in a real life situation where she had to use a firearm to defend herself.

Earlier this year, three people trespassed on Kenya’s property in Atlanta, climbing the wall that surrounds her home. Kenya responded by grabbing a pistol and brandishing it to scare off the intruders. Needless to say, it worked. The three individuals, a woman and two men, left the scene.

The reality star then took to Instagram to discuss the incident and offer a $1,000 reward to anyone who aids in the arrest of the suspects.

“I have a right to feel safe in my home and to protect myself. I don’t care if I’m on TV. What if 3 strangers banged on your front door …2 of them being grown men wearing dark clothing knowing they could only get to you by jumping fences or trespassing onto other properties and mine? There are home invasions, robberies, rapist…What if your children or loved ones were threatened this way?” wrote the 45-year-old former Miss USA.

Amen! Yes, you do have a right to feel safe in your home and protect yourself! But please, do your community, i.e. the gun community, a favor Kenya, the next time you see anti-gun groups point to faux statistics that argue “when a woman owns a firearm, it is far more likely to be used against her than by her” or suggest that “women simply aren’t defending themselves with guns at a significant rate,” please speak up!

On this front, the gun-grabbers have been successful at convincing a large percentage of Americans that women are more safe when they are less free to defend themselves. This is patently false. A well-trained and well-armed woman is a force to be reckoned with. Those who disagree only need to talk to Ms. Kenya Moore or any of the other well-armed women of the Real Housewives of Atlanta.