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The Gun Rights of American Citizens The gun rights of the citizens of the United States of America are protected by the Second Amendment to the Constitution, ratified December 15, 1791. The second amendment states that, “A well-regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms shall not be infringed” (Liberty Day Colorado). This Amendment to the Constitution has been debated for several Centuries. There are several sides which people hold their own beliefs as to what the true and original meaning is to be. The Supreme Court of the United States of America has given individual States a lot of latitude as to being able to make and enforce laws concerning firearms but they have always upheld the Constitutionality of the Second Amendment. Some believe the right to bear arms has nothing to do with the use of firearms for personal protection while other believe, and take a more literal stance on, that that Amendment gives them the right to own as many firearms as they want or deem necessary. This debate is far from over as the 2012 Presidential Election nears, gun rights still remain a hot topic. Generally the two camps are divided into the Democrats, which believe in very tight restrictions on gun ownership, and the Republicans which have a more liberal view. Research this topic has brought to light the many pros and cons of this issue. Tim Gearhardt, owner of TJ’s Firing Line Gunsmith, had some very interesting views. During an interview with Tim, he was very candid on his position of gun rights. In Tim’s opinion, the rights of gun owners are slowly being taken away. It seems to him that the government is attempting to make it more difficult for the average law abiding American citizen to own firearms, while the criminals will always find a way to obtain firearms. Gun control may seem to have a good side as it is intended to keep firearms out of dangerous hands but those who wish to do harm will always find a way to obtain firearms illegally. His stance on gun control and gun rights is to enforce the existing laws rather than to enact more stringent laws. An article, Handgun Control Debate, from the Awesome Library website discussed a Supreme Court case involving gun rights. The Supreme Court made a landmark ruling in the case, District of Columbia v. Heller that upheld the individual’s right to bear arms on June 26, 2008. Before this ruling the biggest debate was the government’s role in the regulation of firearms. The two factions that were instrumental in bring this case before the Supreme Court was the National Rifle Association and the Brady Center. The National Rifle Association argued that the Second Amendment to the Constitution guaranties every law abiding United States Citizen the right to own and poses a firearm. The Brady Center argued that the Second Amendment does not guaranty an individual’s right to own or poses a firearm, but rather it limits the ownership to a Militia or Armed Forces. This argument posed another question that was lead towards the Tenth Amendment of the Constitution just as much as it did to the Second Amendment. The Tenth Amendment to the United States Constitution states that, “The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively or to the people” (Liberty Day Colorado). This Amendment limits the Federal Governments evolvement in gun control and leaves it to be more of a State issue. The States tend to be more lax then the Federal Government concerning gun rights. The National Rifle Association and other supporters rely on the protection provided by the Tenth Amendment in order to prevent the Federal Government from taking away the rights afforded to each and every citizen of the United States, given by the Second Amendment. In The New Republic Magazine, Richard A. Posner wrote an article called, In Defensive Looseness. In this article Posner goes into a little more detail on his opinion of the Supreme Court Case District of Columbia v. Heller. He makes many references to the Bill of Rights, which the Second and Tenth Amendment are a part of. Posner believes that the Framers and those who ratified the Constitution and the Bill of Rights was purposely built around a loose construction to ensure that every law abiding citizen had the right to own, poses and carry a firearm. In 1791 the Militia was comprised of every able bodied man since there was no official Military. Thus, given the circumstances of the time, if the United States was to be threatened or in danger, the citizens could unite once again and defend our newly found freedom. The Second Amendment was added in order to allow the citizens to own and carry their own firearms as a means to be better prepared. The Second Amendment of the United States is one of the most antiquated provisions according to Posner. He discusses that there is no way that the framers of the Bill of Rights could have known that the crime rate would soar to what is today. Our Founding fathers specifically added the Second Amendment to the Constitution so the “common” person could always be able to own, posses and carry a firearm of their choice. There have been many laws passed to try to limit the ownership. The District of Columbia v. Heller decision handed down from the Supreme Court was a huge victory for gun ownership and gun rights. Responsible gun ownership has been a staple in the lives of many Americans since our country was founded. Works Cited Adams, Dr. R. Jerry. "Gun Control." Awesome Library. Handgun Control Debate, 2011. Web. 24 Mar. 2012. . Gearhardt, Tim. "United States Gun Control and Citizen Gun Rights." Telephone interview. 15 Mar. 2012. Liberty Day Colorado. The Declaration of Independence and The Constitution of the United States. Liberty Day Colorado. Print. Posner, Richard A. "In Defense of Looseness." In Defense Of Looseness. The New Republic, 27 Aug. 2008. Web. 26 Mar. 2012. . "Sources on the Second Amendment and Rights to Keep and Bear Arms in State Constitutions." Prof. Eugene Volokh, UCLA Law School. Web. 23 Mar. 2012. .