Owner declares his gun shop 'Muslim-free zone'

Florida Gun Supply owner Andy Hallinan said banned Muslims from visiting his store in response to the Chattanooga shootings.

"So effective immediately I'm declaring Florida Gun Supply as a Muslim-free zone," Hallinan said in a video announcing the ban.

"I believe that the vast majority of Muslims are not out to kill us," Hallinan told WFTS.

Hallinan defends the Confederate flag in his video and claims U.S. leaders are attempting to divide the nation into North and South.

He also says, as a part of his duty to protect his fellow patriots, the shooting range and concealed carry classes are free and open to the public — with the exception of Muslims presumably.

Representatives from the Council on American-Islamic Relations said Hallinan's new rule violates federal law, and that they have contacted the Department of Justice.

"I invite Andy, the gun shop owner, to break bread with us, to get to know us as his fellow Americans. As neighbors," Florida's Council on American-Islamic Relations executive director Hassan Shibly told WFTS. "And I think he should get to know us, and not let fear and hatred divide us as Americans."

Hallinan's not the first to try this, of course.

In 2014, an Arkansas-based gun range declared its business a "Muslim-free zone" as well. The Washington Post noted earlier this year, despite at least one anti-discrimination legal challenge, it's still technically "Muslim-free."