Fake Guns For Kids Raise Eyebrows At Fest

As hundreds turned out for a celebration of Hamden’s local businesses, one was asked to pack up early after handing out simulation guns to children.

Recent mass shootings were too lodged in some attendees’ minds.

The fest featured more than 60 business booths and handmade craft vendors, as well as areas for local political candidates and food trucks.

Spectators watched a concert put on by the Whitney Players Theater Company as well as dance performances. There was plenty of fun for kids at a bouncy house and virtual reality truck, where participants could put on goggles and go on an underwater exhibition, drive through a race car simulation, or play a first-person shooter game.

Not everyone liked what they saw. 

In about 100 square feet of grass on one side of the park, Amy Smith and Josh Mennone, owners of a business called Virtual Reality Game Truck North East, set up camouflage tents in a course for kids to run around with fake guns and shoot at each other. The game is branded as ​“laser tag,” though there were no lasers visible.

The participants laughed and screamed, enjoying themselves, but the sight was jarring for some adult spectators. The adults cited the fact that the fest took place 18 days after 22 people were killed in a mass shooting in Uvalde, Texas; seven days after 14 people were shot in Philadelphia; and 27 miles from Sandy Hook Elementary School. 

“This is wrong,” said Susan Gaetano. ​“Teaching them to shoot like this. It’s all very wrong.”

Wasim Sayyad, a father who was sitting near the laser tag course, said he too found the game disturbing: ​“I did not like seeing the reactions on the kids’ faces. It looked like they were conquering something.”

“We do think about it,” proprietor Smith said when asked about hosting children’s games involving toy guns at a time of mass shootings. 

She observed that in open events like Hamden Fest, where anyone can see the game, people are more likely to disapprove than if the game were held in private location, like at a backyard birthday party. She said that she had switched the sound effects on the fake guns to sound like lasers instead of gunshots. She also said that the guns are designed to not look anything like real guns.

“We do the best we can with it. It’s completely understandable if people are uncomfortable,” she said.

Smith said that if the country’s tensions with gun violence got to a point where games like this were too contentious to play in public, her company would transition to participating only at private parties where people who may be uncomfortable would not be able to see it. 

Later in the day, Smith and Mennune put away the laser tag equipment. Deputy Police Chief Kevin Samperi said that some fest-goers asked the police to shut down the toy gun-based activity. When asked how he personally felt about the scene, Samperi did not comment. 

The Rest Of The Fest

Overall, Hamden Fest 2022 was the most successful to date. Hamden Regional Chamber of Commerce President Nancy Dudchik said the Hamden Business Exposition has been an annual event for 17 years, and organizers decided to expand it three years ago into the fest. Now Hamden Fest is centered around the business expo with many other activities. 

“Bringing everything together in one place is one of the greatest things we can do for our community,” Dudchik said. Hamden Fest also serves as the kickoff event for the weekly summer events at Hamden Town Center Park. 

Dozens of people set up lawn chairs and blankets in front of the stage. The Whitney Players Theater Company was invited to perform for the first time ever. Members of the company performed songs they had prepared for a recent cabaret. The youngest performer was 6, the oldest 92. 

The Hamden police canine unit was also in attendance. Canine Office Blaze is an 8‑year-old German Shepherd imported from Hungary. He serves as a multi-purpose tracking, narcotics detecting, and patrol dog. He enjoyed pats from the community as a thank-you for his hard work. 

Businesses on the crafts side of the park were creative. Christina Vaughn owns Faith’s Jewelry Box and Crafts, named after her late daughter. She makes accessories by hand aimed towards the African-American community. Vaughn said that she wants to help people wear items that represent their history and community, and she is the only business owner who makes these types of products in the area. She said she hopes to return to Hamden Fest every year. 

The vast festival managed to have something for everyone to enjoy, even after the fake guns were packed away. Hamden resident Alex Lassonde looked pleased as he sat on the edge of the festival. ​“I like the community in Hamden,” he said.