State weighs lifting Sunday hunting ban
| A statewide study now being conducted by the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission to examine the issue of allowing Sunday hunting has Hankins feeling even more uneasy. “Hiking is a wonderful activity that people can participate in without spending a lot of money. For so many people in our society, particularly parents trying to raise kids, their only time to play outside is on the weekends,” Hankins said. “And Sunday is the only day they can go out in the woods without the fear of being shot.” |
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Only nine states, including North Carolina, now prohibit hunting on Sunday. The North Carolina law was passed in 1869 as part of the blue laws that have roots in religious observance. Today, the reasons for and against keeping the ban spread far from the pulpit. Bruce Bente, a spokesperson for the Asheville-based Carolina Mountain Club, one of the region’s largest clubs, attended one of the Responsive Management-led focus groups in March. “As a club, we are opposed to Sunday hunting on a position of safety,” Bente said. “When we hike during hunting season, we wear blaze orange. The one day we can relax is Sunday.”
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