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black_women_guns_portrait_session_78382.jpg

In this June 29, 2017, photo, Laura Manning poses with her Springfield Armory handgun in Decatur, Ga. Manning, a 50-year-old payroll specialist in Atlanta, is among the ranks of the nation's black women who own a firearm. An empty nester who is the mother of three children, she said she decided she needed to take responsibility for her own safety. "What's going to happen if something goes bump in the night? I need to protect myself," she said. (AP Photo/Lisa Marie Pane)

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black_women_guns_portrait_session_66050.jpg

In this July 5, 2017, photo, Markysha Carter poses for a portrait in Decatur, Ga., with her Taurus PT111 handgun. Carter, a 40-year-old marketing specialist for a bank. Carter is among the ranks of the nation's black women who own a firearm. She started taking classes but each time, "the nervous jitters" would creep in. Then about a month ago, she decided to buy a firearm for protection. She worries about remaining safe should she ever be stopped by a police officer. "As a black person in America, this is a major problem," she said. "You hope and pray you're following all the rules and that officer stopping you is following all the rules and doesn't have an agenda." (AP Photo/Lisa Marie Pane)

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In this July 10, 2017, photo, Alicia Kelley poses for a portrait in Decatur, Ga., while checking the chamber on her handgun. Kelley is a 36-year-old banker who lives in Buford, Ga. She's among the ranks of the nation's black women who own firearms. "I fell in love with shooting at the range," she says. When she and her husband bought a home, they decided to buy a firearm for protection. "As times have changed, it's good to have home protection," she said of violence and the tension in today's unpredictable political climate. "It's so unpredictable. People used to hide behind the computer but now they're coming out. You don't know who you're going to run into. Nowadays people are acting before they're thinking." (AP Photo/Lisa Marie Pane)

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In this July 19, 2017, photo, Dr. Janella Thomas-Burse, a 53-year-old gynecologist, poses with her SCCY 9mm handgun. She's among the ranks of the nation's black women who own a firearm. She only recently purchased a firearm, deciding to get one for self-protection. "It just seemed like it was a no-no and so dangerous," she said of owning one. "I like it but I don't get that adrenaline rush like a lot of folks. I'm still working with the comfort level." (AP Photo/Lisa Marie Pane)

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In this July 10, 2017, photo, Lois Woods, an investigator with a career in law enforcement, poses for a portrait in Decatur, Ga., holding her Glock firearm. Woods is a firearms instructor and among the ranks of the nation's black women who own a firearm. She decided to become an instructor after going through the academy and encountering an instructor whose approach did more to instill fear than inspire her to be a good shooter. She now teaches at a range in metro Atlanta. It used to be rare to see a black woman at the range, she said. "When they come in and I'm walking out and they see my shirt (with the range emblem), they look at me with amazement," Woods said. Self-protection is the overwhelming reason she hears most women cite for learning how to shoot. "The fear of being a victim outweighs everything else," Woods says. (AP Photo/Lisa Marie Pane)

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black_women_guns_78252.jpg

In this May 27, 2017, photo, Marchelle Tigner, a firearms instructor, describes how to line up the sights on a firearm during a class in Lawrenceville, Ga. Tigner's goal is to train 1 million women how to shoot a gun in her lifetime. She is among the nation's black women gun owners who say they are picking up firearms for self-protection. (AP Photo/Lisa Marie Pane)

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black_women_guns_45377.jpg

In this May 27, 2017, photo, a woman learns how to load a handgun magazine during a firearms class in Lawrenceville, Ga. She is among the nation's black women gun owners who say they are picking up firearms for self-protection. (AP Photo/Lisa Marie Pane)

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black_women_guns_06011.jpg

In this May 27, 2017, photo,Marchelle Tigner, a firearms instructor, teaches a student how to shoot a gun during a class in Lawrenceville, Ga. Tigner's goal is to train 1 million women how to shoot a gun in her lifetime. She is among the nation's black women gun owners who say they are picking up firearms for self-protection. (AP Photo/Lisa Marie Pane)

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black_women_guns_26473.jpg

In this May 27, 2017, photo, Marchelle Tigner, a firearms instructor, teaches a group of women how to identify which eye is their dominant eye during a class in Lawrenceville, Ga. Tigner's goal is to train 1 million women how to shoot a gun in her lifetime. She is among the nation's black women gun owners who say they are picking up firearms for self-protection. (AP Photo/Lisa Marie Pane)

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black_women_guns_37183.jpg

In this May 27, 2017, photo, Marchelle Tigner, a firearms instructor, goes over a list of firearms safety tips during a class in Lawrenceville, Ga. Tigner's goal is to train 1 million women how to shoot a gun in her lifetime. She is among the nation's black women gun owners who say they are picking up firearms for self-protection. (AP Photo/Lisa Marie Pane)

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black_women_guns_35461.jpg

In this May 27, 2017, photo, Marchelle Tigner, a firearms instructor, goes over a firearms safety tips during a class in Lawrenceville, Ga. Tigner's goal is to train 1 million women how to shoot a gun in her lifetime. She is among the nation's black women gun owners who say they are picking up firearms for self-protection. (AP Photo/Lisa Marie Pane)

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FILE - In this Saturday, May 31, 2008 file photo, Del. Bob Marshall delivers a speech during the 2008 Virginia Republican Convention in Richmond, Va. Democrat Danica Roem, a former journalist, is trying to unseat Marshall, one of Virginia’s most socially conservative lawmakers, and make history as the first state legislator in the nation to win and serve as an openly transgender candidate. (AP Photo/Steve Helber)

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Democratic nominee for the House of Delegates 13th district seat, Danica Roem, answers a question during an interview Wednesday, June 21, 2017, in Manassas, Va. The former journalist is trying to unseat one of Virginia’s most socially conservative lawmakers and make history as the first state legislator in the nation to win and serve as an openly transgender candidate. (AP Photo/Steve Helber)

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House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi is a favorite in Republican political attack ads. (Associated Press/File)

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FILE - In this March 30, 2017, file photo provided by the Waterville Humane Society shows an Alaskan husky named Dakota in Waterville, Maine. Republican Gov. Paul LePage's pardon made a celebrity out of the Alaskan husky named Dakota that was ordered to be put down after attacking two dogs, killing one. The hearing is set for Monday, July 24. (Karen Vance/Waterville Humane Society via AP, File)

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FILE - This Dec. 11, 2016 file photo shows Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones at MetLife Stadium before an NFL football game against the New York Giants in East Rutherford, N.J. Jones reiterated his belief that star running back Ezekiel Elliott wasn’t guilty of domestic violence in a case the NFL has been investigating for a year. Jones said Sunday, July 23, 2017 on the eve of the opening of training camp that Elliott’s case was “not even an issue over he said-she said.” (AP Photo/Seth Wenig, file)

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FILE - In this Dec. 21, 2016 file photo, a large crowd listens as New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, left, calls for an end to the "shame" associated drug addiction at a vigil outside the New Jersey Statehouse in Trenton, N.J. Christie has come out against a new Republican proposal that would allow police to gain access to the state's prescription drug database without a warrant, but the bill's sponsor says he will still push the bill this year, and even in 2018, if he's re-elected. (AP Photo/Mel Evans, File)

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FILE - In this May 25, 2017 file photo, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie speaks during Caron Treatment Center's Executive Luncheon on the Opioid Crisis at the headquarters of Independence Blue Cross in Philadelphia. Christie has come out against a new Republican proposal that would allow police to gain access to the state's prescription drug database without a warrant, but the bill's sponsor says he will still push the bill this year, and even in 2018, if he's re-elected. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke, File)

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FILE - In this June 26, 2017, file photo, New York Yankees second baseman Starlin Castro bobbles a single hit by Chicago White Sox's Jose Abreu during the first inning of a baseball game in Chicago. Castro will be placed on the disabled list with another injury to his right hamstring, manager Joe Girardi said Saturday, July 22. Castro, activated off the disabled on July 15, reinjured his hamstring while running out a ground ball on Wednesday at Minnesota. He played in the first two games of the series at Seattle on Thursday and Friday with one hit in eight at-bats. (AP Photo/Paul Beaty, File)

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Sen. Tim Kaine, Virginia Democrat, speaks to supporters Saturday, July 22, 2017 on the campus of Roanoke College in Salem, Va. (Don Petersen/The Roanoke Times via AP) ** FILE **