A GUN RIGHTS group in Texas is to hold a mock mass shooting on Saturday in protest at the college’s plans to introduce gun-free zones.

The event will happen at the University of Texas (UT) in Austin as local groups Come And Take It Texas and DontComply.com take to the streets armed with rifles and pistols on display followed by a “crisis performance”.

Matthew Short, a spokesperson for the groups, told the Austin American-Statesman that the event would show that multiple armed civilians would make public spaces safer.

“Criminals that want to do evil things and commit murder go places where people are not going to be able to stop them.

“When seconds count, the cops are minutes away.”

Short said that the event will see actors be “shot” by perpetrators with cardboard guns.

“It’s a fake mass shooting, and we’ll use fake blood.”

Gun noises will be played on a loudspeaker and other volunteers will play the role of first responders.

Professor Joan Neuberger, left, listens as graduate student Jon Brandt speaks during a public forum on the University of Texas campus as a special committee studies how to implement a new law allowing students with concealed weapons permits to carry firearms into class and other campus buildings. AP / Press Association Images AP / Press Association Images / Press Association Images

He said he was not worried the event would appear in bad taste after the Paris attacks and last week’s San Bernardino shootings. However Joan Neuberger, a UT professor who leads Gun Free UT, says the event is an act of intimidation.

Texas has enacted new laws that come into effect on 1 January that allow licence holders display guns openly. There has been some pushback by some institutions, such as UT.

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