Civil Rights

The amount of deaths in the United States caused by guns is 38,000 per year. Although guns are to blame, guns themselves do not kill people, people are the one's committing these crimes. Gun owners, however, hide behind the wall the 2nd amendment creates to protect themselves from judgment. The 2nd amendment states that people have "the right to bear arms", but that statement in itself is misconstrued.

The phrase "the right to bear arms" does not mean that one has the right to own a hand gun. It means that citizens of the United States have the right to defend themselves when the need emerges. In early Amenca the term "the right to bear arms" had a military connotation. Furthermore, it was more of a euphemistic term describing the service in the military rather than a weapon to defend oneself or injure another.

At the time of the 2nd amendment's ratification the need to have a weapon in the household was crucial. This was because of the status of America at the time. Citizens of the United States faced many dangers, such as, Native Americans and other foreign armies. In its furthest definition survival in America was based on an individual's ability to carry a weapon. Surprisingly all white males were required (mandatory) to own ammunition and weapons. Ortiz 2

This leads to the argument of the validity of the 2nd amendment. Is it necessary for a citizen of the United States to carry a gun? The answer is obviously, no. This is because of the fact that back in the 18th century there was no available army. An army was not in action at the time due to the belief that it would diminish the right of the people. Even in modern day America, the United States Code states that the militia is all male citizens and residents at least 17 up to 45 with or without military service experience, and including additionally those under 64 having former military service experience, as well as female citizens who are members of the National Guard. In Amyette v. State the Tennessee Supreme Court stated in 1840 that the term "bear arms" "has a military sense, and no other" and further stated "A man in the pursuit of deer, elk, and buffaloes might carry his rifle every day for forty years, and yet it would never be said about him that he had borne arms; much less could it be said that a private citizen bears arms because he has a AK 47 or pistol concealed under his clothes, or a spear in a cane."

The term "keep" has also been subject to scrutiny. In the recent case Parker v. District of Columbia the court analyzed two different interpretations, one claiming "keep" meant to upkeep the weapons and another claiming "keep" meant personal storage of said weapons. From Webster's Dictionary, we see the first three definitions of keep are "to retain; not to lose," "to have custody," "to preserve; not to let go."

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