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There has been a recent discussion about whether Run, Hide, Fight is outdated. We’re here to assure you it is not.
Run, Hide, Fight is the standard FBI protocol established as the proper response to an active shooter event. In this concept, you must decide to run, hide, or fight from or against an active shooter. The actual decision will come down to your circumstances. Where you are located and if you can safely escape, the shooter will play a role in that decision.
For decades, the FBI has promoted Run, Hide, Fight as the correct response to these events.
A New Approach?
Recently, CNN published an article suggesting that Run, Hide, Fight might not be the proper response.
In this article, CNN National Security Analyst Juliette Kayyem suggested that recent trends might indicate that fighting should be the primary option. Both the number and severity of active shooter events have increased over the years. As such, Kayyem and some public agencies around the country are taking a more aggressive posture and urging individuals to attack the shooter when possible. They say that running or hiding only encourages the shooter to come to find them, resulting in more casualties.
The Truth Of It All
There is a reason the FBI has not wavered on Run, Hide, Fight—it works. Most people caught in an active shooter event lack the training or ability to take on an armed shooter. They are uncomfortable with guns. They are often protecting others with even less capacity to respond, such as children in schools.
If they choose to confront the shooter rather than run or hide, the inevitable result will be their deaths and the loss of those they protect. We view it as irresponsible to encourage those caught in an active shooter event to fight when they have safer options.
Let law enforcement do its job and get out of the way. Watch our video above as we expand on this and also touch on how an alleged active shooter plot was recently foiled in Hollywood.