Brooklyn Councilwoman Inna Vernikov (R) is among a surging number of New Yorkers who have acquired a firearm for self-defense.
The New York Post reported a Sienna poll showing a 17 percent surge in gun buyers in New York. It noted that Vernikov not only bought a gun but also got her concealed carry permit in order to keep the gun with her for personal protection.
She pointed out, “With anti-semitism, it doesn’t feel safe in the city anymore. You’re always on edge and watching your back.”
Vernikov added, “We are short on cops, and recruitments are way down … As much as we need the police, we can’t just rely on the police. Something life-altering can happen in the time it takes for cops to arrive.”
The Messenger noted that she asked that her synagogue designate her as a volunteer safety guard so she can carry her pistol when she comes.
Vernikov said she is ready to “defend myself and my community.”
Her concealed carry pistol is a Smith & Wesson 9mm.
AWR Hawkins is an award-winning Second Amendment columnist for Breitbart News and the writer/curator of Down Range with AWR Hawkins, a weekly newsletter focused on all things Second Amendment, also for Breitbart News. He is the political analyst for Armed American Radio and a Turning Point USA Ambassador. He was a Visiting Fellow at the Russell Kirk Center for Cultural Renewal in 2010, a speaker at the 2023 Western Conservative Summit, and he holds a Ph.D. in Military History, with a focus on the Vietnam War (brown water navy), U.S. Navy since Inception, the Civil War, and Early Modern Europe. Follow him on Instagram: @awr_hawkins. You can sign up to get Down Range at breitbart.com/downrange. Reach him directly at
