What Is The Second Amendment?

The Founding Fathers of the United States of America were escaping the tyrannical rule of a king who demanded from them without providing anything tangible in return. They established a country here in North America to allow men and women true freedom of destiny without the monarchy controlling their lives, and part of that was to draft the Constitution by which our republic stands.

After creating the supreme document for our government, the powers that be determined that some additional addendum's needed to be added to clarify and protect our rights as human beings. One of those changes was the inclusion of the 2nd Amendment. Based heavily on the English Bill of Rights from 1689, the Amendment cements Americans' rights to protect themselves, their homes and necessitates their defense of the state from hostile powers.

But just what does the 2nd Amendment mean to you on a daily basis, as an American citizen and gun owner? What rights and powers does the Amendment grant and what isn't covered? These are all questions that are more relevant today than they were when the nation was founded.

What does the 2nd Amendment actually say?

The version of the Amendment that sits with the original Bill of Rights in the National Archives is very straight-forward and says, very simply:

"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"

In the days of the Founders, this was a very literal and real-world statement. They could be attacked by foreign, hostile powers at any moment, including the Crown itself. The intention of a well-regulated militia was a common, necessary part of life and the interpretation of that in the present time has been debated for decades.

This is supported by the greatest minds of the age, like Noah Webster, who stated "Before a standing army can rule, the people must be disarmed...the supreme power in America cannot enforce unjust laws by the sword, because the whole body of the people are armed..."

As early as 1794 the Amendment was being scrutinized and challenged, bringing clarity to the terms "militia" and "right to bear arms". As firearm technology advances, it will continue to affect the way we view and interpret this document.

The 2nd Amendment in the 21st century

Modern firearms are significantly more advanced than they were in the time of our Founders, prompting a significant amount of push-back on prior interpretation of the 2nd Amendment. While broader motions to restrict automatic rifles and sub-machine guns have improved the safety of our country, particularly in certain areas, the effort to restrict handgun ownership has popped up and failed in most cases.

In what is probably the biggest case for gun ownership, District of Columbia v Heller, the Supreme Court ruled that the handgun ban in Washington D.C. was unconstitutional. Additionally, the law that said rifle and shotguns needed to be kept in the home disassembled or with a trigger lock was also a violation of rights guaranteed by the 2nd Amendment. This was due to the fact that the Amendment exists primarily to allow people to defend themselves in their own homes; if your guns are disassembled and kept locked up, you cannot react to defend yourself or your family.

Another of the biggest victories for Glock owners and handgun enthusiasts in general was the McDonald v City of Chicago case. The court ruled that a handgun ban in the city of Chicago was unconstitutional. While the Seventh Circuit court still imposed some restrictions on gun ownership in the city, the rights of handgun owners were protected.

Handguns are the best line of personal defense against home invasion

When safely handled and properly stored, a handgun can save your family and home from invasion. In most cases, just the presence of an armed homeowner will deter burglars or diffuse a situation entirely. The 2nd Amendment, above all else, guarantees your right to protect your home and family, and that right has been proven through many court cases.

The foresight of the Founding Fathers understood that our rights aren't worth much if we're not able to defend them, so they wrote that protection into our country's most sacred document. Handguns are one of the easiest ways to protect your home, and Glocks are one of the most reliable handguns in production.

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