"I've always been anti-gun," said Debbie Mizrahie of Beverly Hills.

"But I am right now in the process of getting myself shooting lessons because I now understand that there may be a need for me to know how to defend myself and my family. We're living in fear."

During Black Lives Matter protests last year, Mizrahie told The Post, her neighbor's home was firebombed with Molotov cocktails.

"My kids were outside and they saw a huge explosion," she said.

"[The neighbor's] backyard went up in smoke. Trees burned down … But it's only gotten worse. Beverly Hills has been targeted."

Mizrahie, a 40-something mother of two teenagers, isn't alone. Ever since the protests last year descended into riots and lootings, a growing number of Beverly Hills residents have been buying weapons.

"It's gotten to a point where residents feel insecure even going from their door to their car," said resident Shirley Reitman.

"A lot of residents are applying for a concealed carry weapon permit, even though that's a great challenge in LA County."

According to LA County Sheriff Alejandro Villanueva, the department has received 8,105 concealed carry weapon applications and approved 2,102 of them since he took office in December 2018, compared to his predecessor having issued 194 permits in four years.

"Even hardcore leftist Democrats who said to me in the past, 'I'll never own a gun' are calling me asking about firearms," said Joel Glucksman, a private security executive. "I'd say there has been an increase of 80 percent in the number of requests I'm getting this year."