USA: the gun rights movement is non violent
Neither violence nor advocacy through intimidation is condoned by leaders in the gun rights movements
Despite what the radical left and anti-gunners state, the gun rights advocacy movement is peaceful and non-violent
What follows is a joint press release from the Second Amendment Organization, Guns for Everyone National, Liberal Gun Owners, National Association of Sporting Goods Wholesalers, The Firearms Coalition, and Walk the Talk America.
While advocating a right to peacefully, albeit energically, protest any infringement of gun rights at any and all levels, the gun owners and gun rights community does not condone any form of political violence
On the eve of a Presidential inauguration that will take place behind unprecedented security after our Nation’s Capitol Building was attacked by a small band of violent and destructive rioters, we feel it is important to make this clear.
Since the incursion that temporarily interrupted the certification of the Presidential Election on January 6th, some journalists, media pundits, anti-gun activists, and even a small number of elected officials have attempted to tie the Gun Rights Movement to the reprehensible acts that lead to deaths that day and fear of further violence this week. These claims are unfounded.
No gun rights organization or recognized leader called for violence on the Washington events of January 6th 2021.
Unlike what the radical left and anti-gun propaganda would want you to believe, the gun rights advocacy community is extremely diverse and inclusive
Political violence goes against the heart of the gun rights movement. The Second Amendment protects gun rights in order to provide for defense.
The gun community has denounced violence tied to protests throughout 2020, as we also condemn the violence and destruction of property at the US Capitol on January 6th without equivocation.
As early as the afternoon of January 6th, the President of the Second Amendment Institute International, Tyler Yzaguirre, who lives in Washington, DC, posted publicly:
«Today there was an illegal and unprecedented charge on the U.S. Capitol. You have the right to “peacefully” protest. Not to put the lives of Members, police officers, and your fellow Americans in danger.»
Second Amendment Organization's Executive Vice President, Rob Pincus, has vehemently denounced the violence and posted early during the gathering at the Capitol: «I’m sincerely hoping that this protest remains peacefully disruptive.»
This is the real face of the gun rights movement in America and in the world: an inclusive, non-violent, grassroots movement that advocates for the expansion and protection of rights, not the deprivation of them
Despite the media and anti-gun propaganda, even where open carry is legal, protests where firearms are displayed in public are few and far between; and none of those events saw a firearm be discharged
The gun rights movement opposes any and all laws that would deprive law-abiding citizens of effective instruments of self-defense
Alan Gottlieb, Founder of the Second Amendment Foundation, stated that the small band becoming violent at the US Capitol «...disturbed me greatly.»
The list of gun rights movement leaders who have shared similar thoughts is extensive. There are an estimated 100 million gun owners in the United States with over 400 million guns. Less than 1000 rioters entered the US Capitol and not one of them fired a single shot.
As David Yamane, a Professor at Wake Forest who studies gun culture, observed in his rebuke of a recent article in The Atlantic attacking our movement:
«As easy as domestic terrorism is to commit, few gun owners turn to insurrectionist violence.»
Protection of all minorities from any and all forms of oppression through the ownership and use of the best available means of self-defense remains a focus of the gun rights advocacy movement
It should also be noted that there is only one political cause that unites all gun owners: Gun Rights. No action being undertaken that day at the Capitol was specifically related to gun rights. The violent mob was only a very small percentage of the people gathered in DC for political purposes that day. They were certainly not us.
Members of every political party and position are Gun Owners in the US. Organizations in our community represent gun owners of various faiths, lifestyles, races, and interests. Every State has a gun rights organization representing its residents, most have several.
The Second Amendment protects the rights of all Americans, regardless of political party, vote, or position on any issue... and we respect everyone’s right to hold differing opinions and express them peacefully. At this time of great division in our Country, we call for unity amongst all gun owners in the fight to protect our gun rights in the future, regardless of whom you voted for or how you feel about the 2020 Election.
Overall, the gun rights movement remains more vibrantly diverse, anti-racist, non-violent and opposed to any "-phobias" than ANY other so-called "rights movement", both in America and abroad
A statement this week from the 2nd Amendment Rally group, which held a peaceful 4-hour event at the US Capitol in 2019, by working with the US Capitol Police Special Events Division, included the following:
«Responsible Gun Owners know that violence is an act of last resort, not to be engaged in out of anger or frustration. All Gun Owners should consider how their actions might negatively affect our movement. Anyone who feels compelled to protest over the course of the next week should take advantage of their First Amendment Rights lawfully and respectfully. We believe that peaceful protest should be focused on demonstrating strong support for a cause and educational advocacy, not intimidation, towards those one hopes to influence.»
We agree fully.