NRA-ILA ::

NRA And Civil Rights

The National Rifle Association, founded in 1871, is America`s oldest civil rights organization--38 years older than the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, and 59 years older that the American Civil Liberties Union.

President John F. Kennedy On Marksmanship Training

President John F. Kennedy knew the value of marksmanship training: "All of us, I am sure, 10 years ago thought that the need for the man with the rifle would be passing away from the scene in the 1960s. And it is true that there are a good many Americans tonight who are stationed underground in a hardened silo whose duty is to watch some tables and some dials and a button. "But the very size and magnitude of these new great weapons have placed a new emphasis upon what we call rather strangely conventional war, and they have made it even more mandatory that we keep the man with the rifle." (Address given at the Marine Corp Barracks, Washington, D.C., July 12, 1962)

Ernest Hemingway On The Great Outdoors

Ernest Hemingway remembers: "When you have loved three things all your life, from the earliest you can remember; to fish, to shoot and, later, to read; and when, all your life, the necessity to write had been your master, you learn to remember and, when you think back you remember more fishing and shooting and reading than anything else that is a pleasure." (Esquire, February, 1935, reprinted in the June, 1942, American Rifleman)

Targeting Guns

Each year in the United States guns are used three to five times as often for defensive purposes as for criminal purposes. (Targeting Guns: Firearms and Their Control, Gary Kleck, Aldine de Gruyter, 1997)

Children And Guns

The annual number of accidental gun deaths among children has declined 90% since 1975. Today, the odds against a child dying in a gun accident are a million to one. Seventy-eight times as many children die in accidents involving or due to motor vehicles, suffocation, drowning, fire, bicycles and falls. (National Center for Health Statistics)

Summer Olympics

The first gold medal awarded at the Summer Olympics goes to the winner of a shooting competition.

Conservation Dollars

Hunters write the big check for wildlife conservation in America, having contributed more than two billion dollars in tax dollars to the Pittman-Robertson Fund since 1937.

U.S. Presidents And The NRA

Eight U.S. Presidents have been NRA members. They are Ulysses S. Grant, Theodore Roosevelt, William Howard Taft, Dwight D. Eisenhower, John F. Kennedy, Richard M. Nixon, Ronald Reagan and George Bush.

Medal of Honor

Two NRA Presidents—Brig. Gen. Merritt A. Edson (USMC) and Capt. Joe Foss (USMCR)—were awarded the Medal of Honor for service in World War II.

Audie L. Murphy

Audie L. Murphy, the most decorated American combat soldier of World War II, was an NRA Life Member. Murphy received every one of this nation`s decorations for valor plus five decorations presented by France and Belgium.

NRA And WW I

During World War I, NRA earmarked all Life Membership dues to a special trust fund for promoting rifle practice. Recognizing this contribution to the national effort, prominent citizens such as Thomas Alva Edison became NRA Life Members.

U.S. Supreme Court Justice Joseph Story

According to U.S. Supreme Court Justice Joseph Story: "The right of the citizens to keep and bear arms has justly been considered, as the palladium of the liberties of the republic; since it offers a strong moral check against usurpation and arbitrary power of the rulers." (Commentaries on the Constitution, 1833)

State Constitutions And The Right To Keep And Bear Arms

Forty-four states have guarantees of the Right to Keep and Bear Arms in their constitutions.

Accidental Deaths And Firearms

Accidental firearm deaths are at an all-time low, among the entire U.S. population and among children in particular. In 2006, there were 642 accidental firearm-related deaths, including 54 among children. (National Center for Health Statistics)

The Brady Campaign And Gun Ownership

The Brady Campaign, formerly Handgun Control, Inc., opposes law-abiding citizens owning firearms for self-defense. ("To me, the only reason for guns in civilian hands is for sporting purposes."-HCI Chair Sarah Brady, Tampa Tribune, Oct. 21, 1993)

Concealed Handgun Laws

States that adopted nondiscretionary concealed-handgun laws saw murders decreased by at least 8%, rapes by 5%, aggravated assaults by 7% and robberies by 3%. The murder rates of women permit-holders fell by as much as five times the drop of their male counterparts. (More Guns, Less Crime, John R. Lott, Jr., University of Chicago Press, 1998)

President Theodore Roosevelt And Marksmanship Training

In his January 1908 address to Congress, President Theodore Roosevelt advocated the establishment at public expense of rifle ranges in all large public and military schools.

The Brady Act

When the Brady Act became law, 18 states and Washington, D.C.-which accounted for 63% of all violent crimes, including 58% of murders in the U.S.-were automatically exempt because they already had similar laws.

Violent Crime

Three out of four violent crimes committed in the U.S. do not involve firearms. Since 1991, the number of privately owned firearms in the U.S. has increased by 70-75 million, and the nation's murder rate has decreased 43%. (BATFE and FBI)

Project Exile

Within a year of launching Project Exile—which strictly enforces firearms laws against violent armed criminals—Richmond, Va., saw its homicide rate cut 41% from its 1994 high.

N.Y. City And Gun Registration

New York City's rifle-shotgun registration fee has risen 1733% since becoming law in 1967. When he sponsored the registration bill, City Councilman Theodore Weiss promised the fee would never be raised.

Schools And Guns

"While there is a good deal of violence in schools, virtually none of it involves guns," writes criminologist Gary Kleck, who estimates "that under 0.1% of students are caught carrying guns in school in any one-year period."(Targeting Guns: Firearms and Their Control, Gary Kleck, Aldine de Gruyter, New York, 1997)

School Violence

School violence is more than 23 times more likely to be unrelated to guns, according to a national survey of school principals. (Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics report "Violence and Discipline Problems in U.S. Public Schools: 1996-97")

Violence And The Entertainment Industry

The average American child watches 8,000 homicides and 100,000 acts of violence on television before completing sixth grade. (American Psychological Association)

Gun Registration And Crime

When District Attorney Evelle Younger studied 4,065 felonies in Los Angeles during Sept. 26-Oct. 21,1966, and found that firearms figured in 263 cases and that only a small percentage of those guns had been purchased from local retailers, the Los Angeles Times commented: "The study indicates that one argument of gun control proponents—that control over retail sale of weapons should be tightened—would have no effect on most Los Angeles crimes in which guns are used . . . doubts may be expressed that a registration law would have any practical effect on the criminal element."

President John F. Kennedy On Liberty

President John F. Kennedy said: "The protection of our rights can endure no longer than the performance of our responsibilities." (Speech to the 90th annual convocation at Vanderbilt University, May 18, 1963)

Nobel Laureate John Steinbeck On Bearing Arms

Nobel laureate John Steinbeck wrote: "And we may be thankful that frightened civil authorities and specific ladies clubs have not managed to eradicate from the country the tradition of the possession and use of firearms, that profound and almost instinctive tradition of Americans. For one does not really learn to shoot a rifle or machine gun in a few weeks . . . luckily for us, our tradition of bearing arms has not gone from the country, the tradition is so deep and so dear to us that it is one of the most treasured parts of the Bill of Rights—the right of all Americans to bear arms, with the implication that they will know how to use them." (Bombs Away, The Story of a Bomber Team From WWII, John Steinbeck, Paragon House, 1990)

Annie Oakley On Marksmanship Training

Annie Oakley on marksmanship training: I have often and persistently maintained that women should be prepared; not necessarily for war, although it would not be undesirable to have them ready for extreme emergencies in war times, but to defend themselves. "And if women and young girls would take up the practice and gain the skill, which requires but little effort, they would add to their happiness by falling in love with one of the finest of outdoor sports." (Arms And The Man, October, 1919)

1968 Gun Control Act

A film made by the IRS to explain the workings of the 1968 Gun Control Act was withdrawn from public viewing after encountering brisk opposition. The Washington Post termed the film "a sexy and violent movie," while NRA addressed its specific criticisms in a letter to one G. Gordon Liddy, Special Assistant to the Secretary of the Treasury.

Gun Show "Loophole?"

A survey of prison inmates indicated that only 0.7% had obtained their firearms from gun shows. ("Firearm Use by Offenders," Bureau of Justice Statistics, November 2000)

Queen Victoria

The opening shot fired at the British NRA`s first meeting at Wimbledon on July 1, 1860, was fired by Queen Victoria.

Rudyard Kipling And Arthur Conan Doyle

After returning from the Boer War, famed authors Rudyard Kipling and Arthur Conan Doyle promoted civilian marksmanship through the expansion of rifle clubs in England.

Women And Concealed Handguns

One additional woman carrying a concealed handgun reduces the murder rate for women about 3-4 times more than one additional man carrying a concealed handgun reduces the murder rate for men. (More Guns, Less Crime, John R. Lott, Jr., University of Chicago Press, 1998)

The Violence Policy Center And Prof. John Lott

The Violence Policy Center, an anti-gun splinter group, condemned Prof. John Lott`s landmark research on right-to-carry laws to ABC News without having read the first word of his study. (More Guns, Less Crime, John R. Lott, Jr., University of Chicago Press, 1998)

Sen. Charles Schumer And Prof. John Lott

William Simon, Olin Foundation president and former U.S. Secretary of the Treasury, called U.S. Sen. Chuck Schumer`s (D-NY) attack on John Lott`s research "an outrageous slander" and said "Schumer would have known that his charges were false if he had taken a little time to check his facts before rushing into print." (Wall Street Journal, Sept. 6, 1996)

Americans for Gun Safety And The Licensing And Registration Of Law-Abiding Americans

Americans for Gun Safety claims to respect the rights of gun owners but secretly lists the "passage of licensing and/or registration in the next Congress" is its "top national priority." (Americans for Gun Safety Partners Meeting, Oakland, Calif., Sept. 25-26, 2000)

The Police And Personal Protection

Police are under no legal obligation to provide protection for any individual. Courts have ruled the police have an obligation only to society as a whole. (Warren v. District of Columbia, 444 A.2d 1, 1981 )

The United Nations And Gun Control

The United Nations is urging member nations to hold public "destruction events" where confiscated and other collected firearms can be destroyed ceremoniously.

The United Nations And Gun Ownership

As a part of its attack on private gun ownership, the U.N. has endorsed government registration of all small arms and called for tracking of all transfers.

Handgun Bans: The British Experience

The crime rate in London is now higher than the crime rate in New York. Crimes with firearms have risen dramatically since the ban on handgun ownership was passed by Parliament. ("Gun law stalks Britain`s," The Express, May 14, 2001)

Federal Firearms Licenses

With the express intent of eliminating these small businessmen, the Clinton Administration reduced the number of firearms dealers by more than 200,000 by greatly increasing fees and directing BATF to expand its regulatory bounds.

Hunter Protection Legislation

Every one of the 50 states has passed hunter protection legislation that protects sporstmen from the interference of "animal rights" extremists.

Animal Rights Extremists

PETA, the extreme "animal rights" group, has called on the Boy Scouts of America to eliminate their fishing merit badge?

Range Protection Laws

Since 1994 the number of states with shooting range protection laws has increased more than five fold, from 8 to 45.

"Saturday Night Specials"

Studies for the Justice Department have found that "There is no evidence to suggest that criminals prefer smaller caliber guns . . . or cheaper weapons" and that "The often-assumed criminal preference for small, cheap handguns is not confirmed." (James D. Wright, et al., Under the Gun, 1983; Armed and Considered Dangerous, 1986.)

Brady Campaign (HCI) And Campaign Finance "Reform"

The anti-gun movement is not only in favor of gutting the Second Amendment; it also favors curtailing the First Amendment. The Brady Campaign endorsed the McCain-Feingold campaign finance legislation explicitly in the belief that it would help silence the free speech of gun owners. (San Diego Union-Tribune, April 15, 2001)

Firearm Safety

NRA has over 57,000 certified firearms instructors and coaches who teach basic gun safety and advanced marksmanship to hundreds of thousands of students each year.

Firearms Safety Training

Since 1982 NRA has trained in excess of 16 million people in firearms safety and marksmanship.

NRA Represents America

That polls indicate that 63% of Americans feel that NRA represents their views. That number is higher than the number who feel they are represented by the AFL-CIO. (Zogby International, January 2001)

NRA And Unions

That 20% of Union members are also NRA members. These members helped elect George W. Bush in 2000. (Zogby International, 2000)

Roughly 20 Million Americans Align Themselves With NRA

Polling data indicates that 10% of households claim to have an NRA member. That means roughly 20 million Americans align themselves with NRA. This number is obviously higher than actual NRA membership and is explained by the fact that many people who identify with NRA consider themselves members even if their membership has lapsed. (Zogby International, 2000)

NRA And Grassroots

19% of people living in rural areas claim to be NRA members. This strength in rural areas identifies NRA as being a truly grassroots organization, not one just financed by a few wealthy people in isolated areas. (Zogby International, 2000)

NRA And Lobbying

NRA was founded in 1871 with the intention of teaching marksmanship and gun handling to the American people. The necessity to get involved in politics was a relatively recent one, and came from the unreasonable pushes of gun control activists.

NRA And WW II

During World War II, many NRA members sent their privately owned firearms to the people of England to help defend against the Nazi onslaught. This effort was necessary because the British populace had been disarmed by Draconian gun control laws.

NRA And Law Enforcement

NRA`s Law Enforcement Activities Division (LEAD) trains more than 1,300 law enforcement officers a year in marksmanship and gun handling so that they may, in turn, instruct members of their departments.

The NRA Whittington Center

The NRA Whittington Center was founded in 1973 and is the most complete shooting center in the country. It hosts competitive events and offers world class hunting on a limited basis.

NRA -- Institute for Legislative Action

NRA`s Institute for Legislative Action (ILA) was founded in 1975 to protect the individual right to bear arms.

Civilian Marksmanship Program

In 1903, Congress enacted and President Theodore Roosevelt signed a law to provide federal funding for a program intended to increase civilian proficiency with military service firearms for national defense purposes. The law established the Civilian Marksmanship Program.

The President`s Match

The oldest target shooting match in the United States is The President`s Match, held each summer at the National Matches, at Camp Perry, Ohio. By tradition established by President Theodore Roosevelt, the winner of the match receives a letter of congratulations from the President of the United States.

Study Of The Federal "Assault Weapon" Law

The congressionally-mandated study of the federal "assault weapon" law found that: "At best, the assault weapons ban can have only a limited effect on total gun murders, because the banned weapons were never involved in more than a modest fraction of all gun murders." (Urban Institute, "Impact Evaluation of the Public Safety and Recreational Firearms Use Protection Act of 1994," March 13, 1997, p. 3.)

Semi-Automatic Firearms

Despite their modern, military appearance, firearms that have been labeled as "assault weapons" operate like other semi-automatic firearms, use the same ammunition as other firearms, and possess no feature or characteristic not available on other firearms.

Waiting Periods

Before Congress and President Clinton approved the Brady bill in 1993, laws delaying handgun purchases were known to have no effect on crime. During 1992, the most recent year of data available when the Brady bill was passed, California, the state with the most restrictive waiting period law (15 days on all firearm sales, retail and private) had total violent crime and murder rates 58% and 44% higher, respectively, than the rates for the rest of the country. (FBI)

Crime And Waiting Periods

Crime rates and crime trends in states where "waiting periods" have been imposed have been worse than in other states. (FBI)

Background Checks

Federal law requires a background check on anyone purchasing a firearm from a federally licensed firearm dealer, at a gun show or anywhere else.

Right To Carry

People who carry firearms as provided for by state right-to-carry laws are statistically more law-abiding than the public as a whole.

Right To Carry States Have Lower Violent Crime Rates

In 2007, RTC states had lower violent crime rates, on average, compared to the rest of the country (total violent crime by 24%; murder, 28%; robbery, 50%; and aggravated assault, 11%).

Handguns Are Effective Defensive Tools

Two of every three defensive uses of firearms are carried out with handguns. Private citizens benefit from handguns for the same reason that the police do: handguns are easy to carry and they are effective defensive tools. (Targeting Guns: Firearms and Their Control, Gary Kleck, Aldine de Gruyter, 1997)

Firearms And Self Protection

People who use firearms for protection are statistically less likely to be injured in a criminal attack than people who use other means of protection or no protection at all. (Targeting Guns: Firearms and Their Control, Gary Kleck, Aldine de Gruyter, 1997)

Right To Arms

Virtually all scholars who have studied the issue have concluded that the Framers of the Constitution and the Bill of Rights considered the right to arms to be an individual right.

The Second Amendment: An Individual Right

On June 26, 2008, the Supreme Court affirmed, in a 5-4 decision, the ruling of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit in Parker v. District of Columbia (re-cast as District of Columbia v. Heller before the Supreme Court), that the Second Amendment protects a pre-existing, private, individually-held right, to keep arms and to bear arms, without regard to a person’s relationship to a militia.

Commentaries On The Laws Of England

In his Commentaries on the Laws of England (1765-1769), the foundation of all legal education in England and the U.S. for a century, the great English jurist, Sir William Blackstone, discussed "the principle absolute rights which appertain to every Englishman" under the English Bill of Rights of 1689, and observed, "[T]o vindicate these rights, when actually violated or attacked, the subjects of England are entitled . . . lastly, to the right of having and using arms for self-preservation and defense."

Second Amendment

There is no evidence that anyone associated with drafting, debating, or ratifying the Second Amendment considered the right to arms anything other than a right of individual citizens. (Stephen Halbrook, That Every Man Be Armed, University of New Mexico Press, 1984, p. 83.)

Read about the U.S. Supreme Court Decision in District of Columbia v. Heller here.

U.S. Supreme Court And The Tenth Amendment

Congress has no enumerated power to restrict the right to arms, and therefore has regulated firearms through its interstate commerce and taxing powers. However, twice in recent years the U.S. Supreme Court has invoked the Tenth Amendment to strike down federal "gun control" schemes, suggesting strong limitations on the authority of the federal government to restrict the possession and use of arms.

NRA And Criminal Justice

During the 1990s, NRA worked with state legislatures and governors to increase prison sentences, and reduce probation and parole for the most violent criminals, and to impose mandatory sentencing guidelines for repeat offenders. Today, NRA continues to lead the call for expansion of "Project Exile," a federal program that throws the book at felons who illegally possess firearms.

Felons And Gun Registration

In Haynes v U.S. (1968), the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that felons do not have to register illegally possessed guns, because the Fifth Amendment protects them against self-incrimination.

Violent Crime

Since 1991, the number of privately owned firearms has increased by 70-75 million and the nation's total violent crime rate has decreased 38%. The nation's murder rate has decreased 43%.

Violent Crime Trends

The FBI, criminologists, and sociologists credit many factors for the 38% decrease in violent crime since 1991, including improvements in the criminal justice system, law enforcement policies, and the economy, a reduction in the "crack" cocaine trade, and the aging of gang members. Gun control advocates claim that gun control is responsible for the decrease in crime, but since 1991 gun control has been scaled back at the federal, state and local levels, and the number of privately owned firearms has increased between 65-70 million.

Gun Laws

There are tens of thousands of gun laws at the federal, state, and local levels.

Firearm Tracing

Most firearms that are traced by the BATFE have not been used to commit violent crimes, and most firearms that have been used to commit violent crimes are never traced. That is one of the main reasons that the Congressional Research Service has concluded that the tracing system should not be used to make broad determinations about the kinds of guns that are used in crimes.

Right-to-Carry States

Since 1991, the number of privately owned firearms in the U.S. has increased by 70-75 million, the number of right-to-carry states has increased from 15 to 40, and violent crime has decreased 38%.

Foreign Countries

After studying gun laws and crime in 27 foreign countries, the Library of Congress concluded, "From available statistics, among countries surveyed, it is difficult to find a correlation between the existence of strict firearms regulations and a lower incidence of gun-related crimes."

"Armor Piercing Ammunition"

NRA helped to write the federal law prohibiting the manufacture of handgun ammunition capable of defeating bullet resistant vests. The anti-gun lobby lies when it claims NRA opposed the law.

Plastic Guns

In the 1980s, NRA helped write the federal law prohibiting handguns that cannot be detected by airport metal detectors and similar security systems.

Multiple Sales

Federal law requires a dealer to report to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms and state or local law enforcement officials any sale of more than one handgun in a five-day period to an individual.

Eddie Eagle GunSafe Program

NRA's Eddie Eagle GunSafe Program, for children pre-K through 3rd grade, has been provided to more than 22 million children by more than 26,000 schools, civic groups, and law enforcement agencies.

Hunting On Wildlife Refuges

The National Wildlife Refuge System presently consists of 542 refuges comprising over 92 million acres. Of these refuges, 315 provide hunting opportunities.

Firearms Regulations

Since 1968, virtually every aspect of lawful firearms commerce from manufacture to retail sales has been strictly controlled, regulated and licensed by the U.S. Department of the Treasury through its Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms. Few products have the oversight of nearly an entire federal agency. Most states also have a corresponding “BATF” regulatory and law enforcement agency that oversees firearms and enforces state firearms laws. Firearms also fall under all laws relating to negligent manufacture. Any manufacturer who sells an inherently unsafe firearm will very quickly find itself in court. Lastly, firearms are the only product for which an American citizen needs to receive the FBI’s permission—through the NICS—before making a retail purchase. For more information see Fables, Myths & Other Tall Tales about Gun Laws, Crime and Constitutional Rights.

Illinois Senate Debate # 3

Obama has supported banning hundreds of rifles and shotguns commonly used for hunting and sport shooting.
Illinois Senate Debate # 3:
Barack Obama vs. Alan Keyes, 10 /21/04

Handgun Ban

Obama endorsed a complete ban on all handguns. Independent Voters of Illinois/Independent Precinct Organization general candidate questionnaire, 9/9/96 Politco, 3/31/08

Supreme Court

Obama voted against the confirmation of Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Samuel Alito, two of the five Justices who affirmed an individual right to keep and bear arms in the landmark Heller case.

Obama Supports Local Restrictions on Your Gun Rights

Obama supports local gun bans in Chicago, Washington, DC, and other cities. "Obama: 'Common Sense Regulation' On Gun Owners' Rights," ABC News' "Political Radar" Blog, http://blogs.abcnews.com, 2/15/08. ()

Obama and the Leftwing Joyce Foundation

Barack Obama was a member of the Board of Directors of the Joyce Foundation, the leading source of funds for anti-gun organizations and “research.”

1998 Joyce Foundation Annual Report, p. 7.

Obama Wants to Ban Gun Shops

Barack Obama supported a proposal to ban gun stores within 5 miles of a school or park, which would eliminate almost every gun store in America.

Chicago Defender, Dec. 13, 1999

Gun Owner Privacy

Barack Obama voted not to notify gun owners when the state of Illinois did records searches on them.

Illinois Senate, May 5, 2002, SB 1936 Con., vote 26.

Obama and Firearms Owners Identification Cards

Barack Obama voted against a measure to lower the Firearms Owners Identification card age minimum from 21 to 18, a measure designed to assist young people in the military.

Illinois Senate, March 25, 2003, SB 2163, vote 18.

Obama and ammunition magazines

Barack Obama favors a ban on standard capacity magazines.

“Clinton, Edwards, Obama on gun control,” Radio Iowa, Sunday, April 22, 2007. ()

Obama and Ammunition Micro-stamping

Barack Obama supports mandatory micro-stamping.

Chicago Tribune blogs, “Barack Obama: NIU Shootings call for action,” February 15, 2008, ()

Obama and Mandatory Waiting Periods

Barack Obama supports mandatory waiting periods.

Independent Voters of Illinois/Independent Precinct Organization general candidate questionnaire, Sept. 9, 1996. The responses on this survey were described in “Obama had greater role on liberal survey,” Politico, March 31, 2008. ()