Premium Essay

The Importance Of The Second Amendment

Submitted By
Words 897
Pages 4
Being an American citizen comes with many rights, one of those being the right to bear arms. Richard Henry Lee, one of our founding fathers, put it best when he said, “ To preserve liberty, it is essential that the whole body of the people always possess arms and be taught alike, how to use them.” Since the very beginning of our country, guns have been an important part of our lives. Our founding fathers understood the importance of the second amendment and like them, I firmly believe that the second amendment is key to upholding our freedom. Under no circumstances should the government have the right to disarm the American people. The second amendment was put into place to give us control of our own defense; it is meant to give us the opportunity …show more content…
Not only does gun control impose on our individual freedom and God given right to protect ourselves and our loved ones, it also violates the constitution. The second amendment states that our right to bear arms shall not be infringed. I do not believe that our founding fathers chose their words lightly. Director of Gun Owners of America Larry Pratt, stated that, “The founding fathers enacted the Second Amendment as part of a larger Bill of Rights because they wanted to spell out individual rights that would be free from any governmental jurisdiction.”. They clearly spelled out their intentions, and there is nothing ambiguous about the words “Shall not be infringed”. Proponents of gun control argue that the constitution is living and should change to fit society, but I believe that the constitution says what it means and means what it says. It is not a document that should be interpreted differently to fit certain ideas. If the Constitution says that the right to bear arms shall not be infringed, then the right to bear arms shall not be …show more content…
I learned from my mother’s first hand experiences that gun control does not lead to positive outcomes. My mother was born and raised in a Communist Romania where guns were taken from the citizens in order to disable them; in order to take their power away. The guns were ceased by the government to ensure that the people did not have the means to retaliate. After the gun confiscation the Romanian people were left helpless and oppressed. They could only stand by and watch as those who spoke out against the government were put into “re-education” camps, taken away never to be seen again, or killed. Romania wasn't the first country to use this tactic against their citizens. Country after country has used gun control to manipulate and oppress their people. Through my mothers unimaginable experiences with a corrupt government I was able to learn the importance of being armed and I was taught to value my second amendment right. America is special, we have rights that other people can only dream of. We can’t take these rights for granted and we have to learn from history. If people observed history they would realize that gun control is a step toward confiscating weapons, and confiscating weapons is a step towards

Similar Documents

Premium Essay

The Importance Of The Second Amendment

...All the Amendments are very important and they all have something different to say. The Amendment that is most important to me is the Second Amendment. The Second Amendment is the Right to bear arms. When you see the right to bear arms, many things come to mind. I picked this Amendment because I am a huge fan of hunting, I’m all about protecting my family in our home, and the most important one of all is our military. During hunting season, it is a time for me to spend time with my family. I have been out hunting since I was about eight years old. I found it to be a great sport and a great way to get food for your family. The second reason this Amendment is important is Americans should have the right to carry and hold guns in their homes....

Words: 1261 - Pages: 6

Premium Essay

Importance Of The Second Amendment

...The second amendment has many reasons as to why we need it. Some of the reasons aren’t as big and important as others are, but they are still important and considered upon by the people. One of the reasons why we need the second amendment is for protection. It can be protection that can range from your own protection, Like if there were to be someone who breaks in your house or someone tries to hurt you. One day will you ever that later that day someone was going to break into your house and take everything you own and you were upstairs or in another room and there would be nothing that you can do about it. Or will be able to know that at any time and on any random day that someone will come from out of nowhere and try to hurt or one of the...

Words: 258 - Pages: 2

Premium Essay

Argumentative Essay: The Importance Of The Second Amendment

...In 1975 the District of Columbia pass the Firearms Control Regulations Act which prohibited guns at home from being functional firearms and also made it nearly impossible to own a gun. This created conflict with the second amendment in the constitution, which states “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.” It can be seen this law D.C. passed violates the constitution due to citizens not being able to have a functional firearm at their home. This caused the case of District of Columbia v. Heller to arise. Dick Anthony Heller, a police officer in D.C., applied for a one-year license that he would use to own a handgun at his place of residence. He was then denied the license. Heller sued D.C. on the account of not upholding his second amendment right. The district court’s response was it was not valid and it was dismissed. It was appealed by Heller and The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia decided that making people have...

Words: 2391 - Pages: 10

Premium Essay

The Importance Of The Second Amendment In The United States

...What if someone for whatever reason broke into your home, wouldn't you want the right to protect yourself and your family? The second amendment gives every American the right to protect themselves, their family, and their home. Without the second amendment Americans as a whole would have no rights to carry a gun or even own one for that matter. You might not want to own a gun but for those of us that do the second amendment is very important. The only problem with that is some people of society as well numerous people in the government think that other Americans should not have a gun. But what would happen if a new world war happened. They would be defenseless if we did get rid of gun ownership, just imagine one big defenseless America. That is why the founding fathers of America added the second amendment to the constitution... To be safe....

Words: 498 - Pages: 2

Premium Essay

Gun Control: The Importance Of Second Amendment Trol Laws

...the next person to stop being a good person? Or, would you rather be prepared in case it happens to be a rapist or murder? Without an equalizer, we are like animals, the strongest takes whatever he wants. We believe guns are very important for protection because: On average guns are used 80x more often to protect a life than to take one.(CDC) Women use a gun to defend themselves from sexual abuse 200,000 times per year.(Kleck and Gertz, "Armed Resistance to Crime," at 185) 3 out of 5 felons say they won’t mess with an armed person.(US department of justice) Arguement #1: The Second Amendment...

Words: 1541 - Pages: 7

Premium Essay

Second Amendment Dbq

...Was the Second Amendment Designed to Protect an Individual’s Right to Own Guns? People have a lot of different views of if the Second Amendment really was designed to protect an individual’s right to own guns. Robert Shalhope believes that the Second Amendment helped Americans to own guns so that they could maintain freedom and liberty. Lawrence Delbert on the other hand believes that the second amendment was made just for “well-regulated militia.” The well-regulated militia in our day and age would be more like cops or the armed forces, anybody protecting over the people of America. The Second Amendment can be interpreted in a lot of different ways. These two authors have two opposite views on the Second Amendment and what it says. Each...

Words: 717 - Pages: 3

Premium Essay

2nd Amendment

...controversial is the second amendment to the constitution and its importance. The Second Amendment states that, “a well regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to bear arms, shall not be infringed.” The interpretation of the “right of the people” shows that it protects the individual rights of the citizens to own guns. The second amendment is widely considered to be the most important amendment in the constitution for several reasons. It bestows the citizens with protection, defense, and it establishes greater hegemony for the nation as a whole. The second amendment grants protection to all law biding citizens. It protects them from criminals and even from the government. Owning a gun allows citizens to protect their property and themselves. For example, if a criminal knew for a fact that a certain house or a certain neighborhood had guns then he would surely think twice before breaking in or vandalizing their property. The second amendment gives the citizens protection with guns and therefore it discourages criminals from attacking the innocent. According to firearms expert Neil Schulman, firearms are the most effective way to protect your home from common criminals. As long as you learn how to use guns safely and take precautions to keep them out of the irresponsible hands of criminals, then the guns makes your home safer and could potentially save your life and that of your loved ones. The second amendment also offers protection...

Words: 999 - Pages: 4

Premium Essay

Bill Of Rights Importance

...Can the amendments from the Bill of Rights be valued of importance? The bill of rights consists of ten amendments each guaranteeing an individual right of every United States citizen. In this essay I have picked two amendments, which I will explain, their importance and negative consequences. Continuing on the relevance of the second amendment in today’s American climate and the arguments that those are for/against about gun control. The first amendment of the Bill of Rights sets the tone for the rest of the document showing the limitations the government has towards any United States citizen. “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech,...

Words: 1121 - Pages: 5

Premium Essay

Anti-Federalists Against The Constitution

...there wasn’t a bill of rights drafted in the original copy. Without a bill of rights, the people would never be aware of their unalienable rights and the power and roles of their government. Patrick Henry said, “The liberties of a people never were, nor ever will be, secure when the transactions of their rulers may be concealed from them,” at the Convention of Virginia in June 1788. He was trying to convey a message that showed the importance of citizens having their rights listed, so the government would never be able...

Words: 1709 - Pages: 7

Premium Essay

Pros And Cons Of The Second Amendment

...On December 15, 1791, the Bill of Rights was adopted after having been ratified by three-fourths of the states. The Bill of Rights is the first ten amendments of the Constitution. The second amendment out of the ten that were ratified states that "...the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed". The second amendment primarily protects the rights of gun owners and allows people to legally own firearms. There have been many discussions and arguments about majority of the Constitution but none have ever been debated back and forth as much as the second amendment has in recent years. One side of the argument is that firearms that are produced and sold to the civilian market aren't covered by the second amendment due to the fact that when the second amendment was passed there were't firearms such as AR-15's, Glocks, so on and so forth. That side of the argument often tries to attack the second amendment by trying to pass stricter gun laws or by trying to completely repeal the second amendment. On the other hand however, many people believe that laws regarding the second amendment are sufficient enough or too strict as is. The second amendment was introduced to protect the people. It was not just some law to allow people to simply just own firearms but it was instituted to keep...

Words: 605 - Pages: 3

Premium Essay

Evaluating Instuctional Materials

...Sciences class about the meaning and importance of the rights guaranteed under the bill of Rights. This is in line with the History-Social Science Content Standards of California Public Schools objective 12.2.1 “Discuss the meaning and importance of each of the rights guaranteed under the Bill of Rights and how each is secured (e.g., freedom of religion, speech, press, assembly, petition, privacy.) [ (California Dept of Education, 2000) ]” The first resource I am using is a hand out from the Southern Poverty Law Center website Tolerence.org that will be used as a pre and post lesson assessment tool. This simple hand out asks only two questions which students will have to provide a short written answer for. This first is “What rights are protected under the First Amendment? The second is “What would be a violation of someone’s First Amendment Rights?” While these may seem to be simple questions, there will likely be a drastic difference in response from the pre-assessment to the post assessment, which is the main reason I selected this resource. As a pre-assessment, it will allow the teacher to understand the base of knowledge the students already have about the First Amendment, and as a post-assessment, the teacher will be able to see how much learning has occurred during the lesson. This would be a primer I would use in my lesson about the First Amendment as well as a post lesson assessment tool. [ (Tolerence.org Staff, 2014) ] The second resource I chose was an article from...

Words: 648 - Pages: 3

Premium Essay

Bill of Rights

...central government provided by the Constitution. The second reason was to protect the freedoms secured by the Americans after their war for independence. Without a Bill of Rights, the people feared that the government would have the power to oppress and to control everything. In my opinion, the First Amendment is the most important. By taking each letter in the word first, I will explain why the First Amendment is important to me. F-freedom; The First Amendment states, Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances. This is quite possibly the amendment that makes the United States the democratic and orderly country that it is. The choice of freedom to say and listen to whatever one wants is the ultimate independence. I-immeasurable; the importance of the First Amendment can't be measured. The freedoms and liberties it gives me are too great to mark with a value. This part of the Bill of Rights allows me to have a voice in the country I live in. R-requisite; The First Amendment is requisite, or absolutely needed. It sets boundaries that give the people rights in which the government cannot always interfere. Without this amendment, our country would lose order. S-security; I feel that the First Amendment is a shield that protects every citizen's rights. It provides...

Words: 447 - Pages: 2

Premium Essay

Edu 450

...POS – 301 November 2, 2014 Professor Biddle My Rights and Freedoms As a citizen of the United States I do not appreciate the freedom and rights given. I have not thought about how fortunate I am to live in a country that allows freedom of speech, freedom of expression, or my favorite, freedom of religion. Throughout this assignment I will explain which freedom in the first amendment relates to me the most, discuss why the Bill of rights are important, and discuss the process for amending the Constitution. The freedom in the first amendment of the constitution relates to me the most would be Freedom of Religion. Freedom of Religion states that as an American I can practice ANY religion I want or I do not have to practice any religion at all. The reason freedom of religion relates to me most is because I am a strong believer in the idiom “to each his own”. I do not care if my friend is Jewish, Hindu, Christian, the list goes on. I think expressing one’s self is extremely important and religion is one of those ways. To me, what a person’s religion is does not determine if they are a good person or not. There are people that consider themselves “Jewish” or “Christian” but yet they are extremely mean and do not care about others. Freedom of religion allows for every single citizen of the United States to have a sense of freedom. We do not feel obligated to have a certain type of religion, which is better! The reason I say this is because if we are not forced to follow...

Words: 862 - Pages: 4

Premium Essay

Similarities Between The 13th, 15th, And 19th Amendments

...and 19th amendments have all greatly affected and changed the lives of many Americans for different reasons. Each of these amendments has to due with giving people equal rights no matter what race or gender that they may be. These are all tremendous milestones in American history. First, the 13th amendment was passed in 1865 to end slavery. African Americans were no longer allowed to be considered as property. Instead, they became viewed as real people, and slavery was banned unless it was used as a form of punishment This amendment was passed because before and during the civil war, most northern citizens strongly stood against slavery. They thought it was unjust to make people work for long hours and to be treated unfairly. This amendment clearly and effectively signified that no American citizen could own slaves....

Words: 624 - Pages: 3

Premium Essay

Chapter Summary: The Second Amendment

...The Second Amendment. It protects us. It gives us strength. It also defines Americans with its endless bickering from its two opposing sides: those who support the right to bear arms and those who detest the use of guns. The call of attention to recent school shootings has created attempts of exploitation of the pro-gun individuals of society. According to the Communities Digital News, the anti-gun portion of society attempts to exploit the innocent dead victims of school shooting for political gain. They resort to the same tactics that they use with just about everything, the white rich, privileged man stops society from taking any effective action. The Second Amendment states, “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.” The Second...

Words: 599 - Pages: 3