The human rights to personal safety and self-protection are universal. As Americans those rights are recognized and guaranteed under our country’s founding documents, including the Second Amendment contained in the Bill of Rights, which protects our right to firearm ownership.
The Supreme Court of the United States, as well as the US District Court in the State of Illinois, have issued decisions recently that are easily summed up as: Human rights cannot be abridged. And why does that matter? It matters because if something is a right, and it’s recognized as such, it should be recognized everywhere —not just certain places or times.
Consider the definition of unabridged:
“Unabridged means something is complete and not shortened. For example, an unabridged book is the entire book, with nothing cut out.”
For certain states, cities or municipalities to cut out rights (or portions of them), to place their own restrictions on rights, is unconstitutional.
Americans have the right, everywhere they go, to be safe in their person. Just as our Fourth Amendment right to protection from unreasonable search and seizure applies in the entire country, so does the Second. Just as the right to privacy in the 14th Amendment applies across the country, so does the Second. We are seeing a beautiful surge in people questioning why our Second Amendment rights have been abridged for so long!
The status quo of abridged rights being challenged is a reflection of several things:
- The ability of private citizens to access and gather information to support their case. Searching court documents and laws is easier than ever and it’s allowing people to understand the laws of our country more fully.
- Many grassroots organizations have a clear goal of removing the abridgments of rights, and actively pursuing court cases to this end.
- The common use of firearms is getting more exposure due to mainstream media losing its monopoly on information. It’s not uncommon to own and use ARs, AKs, semi-automatic pistols; and it IS legal and permissible for people to own full-auto firearms with the right paperwork. (However, the required National Firearms Act paperwork is still an arduous and lengthy process under the ATF. It is also cost-prohibitive for some.) There is evidence, however, that the government stranglehold in this area is starting to lift.
Stay Informed and Active
It’s often easier to be quiet than to be the squeaky wheel. Many of us would prefer to quietly go on with our work and family than stop and pick a fight. But there are also emerging fights that must be fought in order for freedom to flourish.
But back to the concept of abridgment, many organizations actively seek out plaintiffs to be added to existing challenges to abridged Second Amendment rights. It is a topic to tune into, and that can be as easy as following some pages on social media. Go follow pages like the NRA, Gun Owners of American, Firearms Policy Coalition, and the 2nd Amendment Foundation. All these organizations are doing work on behalf of Americans’ gun owners—and often the legal cases filed, or are soon to be filed, are listed on their websites. It is here where average gun owners, especially those in states where rights are being abridged, can make a difference. The collective weight of pooled resources used to fight legal battles in an offensive manner is what is moving the needle on gun rights.
If joining a case is outside the realm of possibility for your involvement, at the very least get active by talking about the rights that you hold dear. As a country, we’ve been told that polite discourse shouldn’t involve politics or religion for far too long. Polite discourse with those we care about should involve all the things that matter to us. The laws that influence our freedom most definitely matter! There is a maxim that says that culture is upstream of politics. Cultivate what you love and care about with those people you love and care about, and the politics that are downstream. Well, they’re not salmon, but they don’t have an option of going back against the current.
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