I think there's a terminology problem. To me a "footgun" is a feature which provides you with a very easy way to shoot yourself in the foot, hence the name. For example there's no way that the a[b] array index operation should default to not having bounds checks as it does in C and C++. That's a footgun. Rust does pretty well on this front, and I don't think async is especially worse.
But I can see Rust async being more of a gumption trap than many features. A gumption trap is a problem which uses up your motivation before you can work on the thing you actually wanted to do and so there's none left for the actual project.
But I can see Rust async being more of a gumption trap than many features. A gumption trap is a problem which uses up your motivation before you can work on the thing you actually wanted to do and so there's none left for the actual project.