The UK has some of the strictest gun laws in the world. Most of us don’t even know anybody who has a gun and can’t think of a good reason why anybody would want one. As a result, we Brits are very confused by the American obsession with firearms. A fundamental difference between the two countries is that there is no right for UK citizens to own a gun whereas most Americans say that their countries constitution gives them this right.
The Second Amendment
The American constitution came into force in 1789. There was no right to bear arms in the original document. Since its creation, it has been amended 27 times, the first 10 of these amendments being termed the “Bill of Rights” which were supposed to protect individual freedoms from a powerful centralised government. The second amendment contained the often-quoted section on the right to bear arms.
So what does the second amendment actually say? “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.”
Yes, really that’s it. Hardly the unequivocal right to walk around Texas with a Kalashnikov is it! The language is first of all very vague. Does it mean individuals can form a Militia when necessary and bear arms as part of it? Does it mean people have a right to own and use firearms even if there is a necessary Milita??
Secondly, the amendment was added in 1791 when most of America was lawless and dangerous so there was a need for individual protection. Besides how else were the founding fathers going to steal everything from the indigenous population without firearms? Today there is large and well-armed police force and a huge military so does and should the second amendment still apply?
Black Americans will probably argue strongly that they need some personal protection from the police. And they would be right. However, they are likely to disagree this is best provided via personal firearm ownership as they can apparently be legally shot by a policeman (in the back) for even thinking about a gun.
The Fine Print
Each state in America has its own gun laws however each state has to comply with the constitution. Some states allow people to carry concealed weapons, they do not require owners to report they own a gun and many do not require a gun owner to obtain a permit. Some states have restricted guns, for example, by making it illegal to take them to college campuses, where alcohol is served, places of worship, sports arenas or hospitals. However, these restrictions vary greatly; Wyoming bans guns in all these places (surprisingly as does Texas) whereas Colorado does not restrict guns from these locations at all. Funny hey – you can’t drink and drive but taking a gun to a bar is fine and dandy.
Exactly what the second amendment means has been tested in the American supreme court. Rulings have generally supported the individuals right to own and use firearms. Surprisingly as recently as 2008, the Supreme Court decided that the second amendment meant the “individual right to possess a firearm unconnected with service in a militia” and therefore ruled Washington D.C.’s handgun ban was illegal. Yes, you read that correctly in the USA it is illegal to stop people from owning guns.
There have been a few laws added to the statute books federally that have restricted firearm ownership such as preventing the ownership of; sawn-off shotguns, grenades, bombs and machine guns. It wasn’t until 1968 that the right to own a gun was removed for the mentally ill and those below 21. Amazingly it wasn’t until 1993 that background checks had to be performed before an individual could buy a gun.
Are There Any Restrictions?
There are a few instances when an American does not have a right to own a gun. You can’t own a gun if you are;
1) convicted or being tried in any court of a “crime punishable by imprisonment for a term exceeding one year”
2) a fugitive from justice
3) a user of or addicted to any controlled substance
4) adjudicated as a mental defective or has been committed to any mental institution
5) an illegal alien
6) discharged from the Armed Forces under dishonourable conditions
7) subject to a court order restraining the person from harassing, stalking, or threatening an intimate partner or child of the intimate partner or who has been convicted of a misdemeanour crime of domestic violence.
Well sorted then – how could anything possibly go wrong? In fact, the statistics back up America’s incredible gun safety record – there are only 39,000 deaths annually and 360 daily injuries (yeah each and every single day) from firearms. So clearly everything is working fine, isn’t it?
The NRA
You will have probably heard of the NRA (National Rifle Association). It was created in 1871 to “promote and encourage rifle shooting on a scientific basis”. It supported rifle marksmen, hunting skills and also trained soldiers and policemen. It has always and still does train people in safe and effective firearms use whilst supporting firearms based sports.
In the last 50 years, it has become highly political and used its huge funding base to attempt to stop any type of gun restriction in individual states as well as federally. Bizarrely its website now declares itself as “America’s longest-standing civil rights organization”. Move over Martin Luther King there’s a new boy in town. The NRA has obtained a reputation for initiating and supporting lawsuits that promote gun ownership, aggressively lobbying politicians and having some control over the selection of political candidates. Don’t believe they can do this? In 2012, 88% of Republicans and 11% of Democrats in Congress had received an NRA contribution at some point in their career. In 2016 the NRA spent an incredible $416m on ‘political activities’.
We have the NRA to thank for wise words such as “The only thing that stops a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a gun” and the classic “The one thing a violent rapist deserves is to face is a good woman with a gun!”. The NRA repeatedly ignore the scientific analysis of crimes which show that you are 4.5 times more likely to be shot in any situation if you have a gun on you than if you do not. This finding has been replicated many times by reputable scientists.
It is hard to understand how a sports and safety organisation has morphed into this political beast that has such a huge influence on American policy. Isn’t it funded by gun makers and sellers to do their bidding? Well no it’s not quite that simple. Gunmakers are banned from funding the political arm of the NRA although they do donate millions to the rest of the organisation and provide huge amounts of income via advertising to NRA members. The political war chest comes mainly from huge numbers of gun-owning Americans who make small personal contributions.
In 2012 a 20-year-old went to Sandy Hook primary school and killed 26 people, including 20 children between the ages of 6 and 7. You would think support for guns and the NRA would dip after this wouldn’t you? Not in the crazy USA. The NRA war chest doubled as gun owners feared their gun-toting rights will come under attack.
The Problem
And therein lies America’s problem. Americans.
