Much debate has raged about the second amendment, but it was not always so. On September 17, 1787, our Constitution was ratified with the intent that certain rights be outlined and added. The early citizens were concerned that the Constitution did not specifically mention our rights. Thus, the Bill of Rights was added in 1791. The right to worship, to assemble, petition, speak, and the freedom of the press were combined into the first amendment. The second amendment was added to protect the first and because of the brutality that led to the addition of the 3rd amendment. Our founders saw firsthand what happened when the citizen is unarmed. They saw the brutal atrocities that ensued from quartering soldiers. The second amendment is not about hunting but for protection against all forms of tyranny.
Much of the debate is over the word ‘Militia.’ It is seen as a grisly word today. The Militia was made up of lawyers, shopkeepers, and farmers who believed so strongly in Liberty that they were willing to die for it. In Federalist Paper no. 29, Alexander Hamilton said, “a well-regulated militia (is) the most natural defense of a free country.” He goes on to say that the Militia would guard against the necessity of a standing army. The only way for the citizens to be free from tyranny was to be a ‘well-regulated militia.’ They were neighbors who routinely trained with each other in tactics and weaponry. Richard Henry Lee wrote, ‘A militia when properly formed, are in fact the people themselves.”
We have been so blessed in this country with a life of ease that we have forgotten our sacred duties. Most Americans have little knowledge of our founding documents and do not know about our inalienable rights. As American citizens, we are the Militia. We are the governors of our government. We are the safeguards of our freedom. The second amendment is about the security of a free State whereby a well-regulated Militia is necessary to that end. The Militia is us, our neighbors, our friends, fellow shopkeepers, and farmers standing together for the protection of each other and in defense of Liberty.
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.
Lexington Common The 19th of April 1775 by Don Troiani
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