The Second Amendment, which is a part of the Bill of Rights, is an important amendment that was written in such a way that over the years people have struggled to come up with the exact way in which it was meant to be interpreted. The Second Amendment states “The right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed” (Pendergast, Pendergast, Sousani 30). During times in our American history we have reached a point where most people were in agreement with how the government handled this amendment and everything surrounding it. Recent violent crime in the U.S. has sparked repeated public calls for stronger federal gun control laws (Pendergast, Pendergast, Sousani 31). Throughout the extensive period of time in which many American citizens
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The Firearms act of 1934 greatly restricted the purchase of automatic weapons, rifles, and shotguns (Cottrol 67). The people of the United States felt a sense of relief when an initial precedent was set for the Second Amendment. This was one of the first acts restricting the purchase of weapons, this was seen as the first action taken by the government to begin a trend of gun control (Cottrol 67). Gun control means political efforts to regulate the manufacture, sale, possession, and use of various types of firearms (“Gun Control”). When the government took action and in a way initially supported the side of viewing the amendment as a collective right it took the disagreement between the two sides to a new level. In the 1960’s todays heated gun control debate really got started (Cottrol 67). The government during this time period also passed a few laws that were supported by both parties in congress, the two different parties essentially supported the two separate sides of the gun control debate, so this was an important accomplishment to pass a few laws that they both supported. The Gun Control Act of 1968 and the Omnibus Crime and Safe Streets Act of 1968 were two of the laws passed that were heavily supported by both parties in the house and senate. These laws were passed after the assassinations of Martin Luther King Jr. and John F. Kennedy (“Gun Control”). These assassinations were seen as things that could have been prevented if the guns weren 't allowed to be owned by these types of people. These overlapping statutes were passed barring certain individuals from owning guns (“Gun Control”). During this time period there weren’t many victories for those who opposed gun control because of the precedents set by the laws being
The Firearms act of 1934 greatly restricted the purchase of automatic weapons, rifles, and shotguns (Cottrol 67). The people of the United States felt a sense of relief when an initial precedent was set for the Second Amendment. This was one of the first acts restricting the purchase of weapons, this was seen as the first action taken by the government to begin a trend of gun control (Cottrol 67). Gun control means political efforts to regulate the manufacture, sale, possession, and use of various types of firearms (“Gun Control”). When the government took action and in a way initially supported the side of viewing the amendment as a collective right it took the disagreement between the two sides to a new level. In the 1960’s todays heated gun control debate really got started (Cottrol 67). The government during this time period also passed a few laws that were supported by both parties in congress, the two different parties essentially supported the two separate sides of the gun control debate, so this was an important accomplishment to pass a few laws that they both supported. The Gun Control Act of 1968 and the Omnibus Crime and Safe Streets Act of 1968 were two of the laws passed that were heavily supported by both parties in the house and senate. These laws were passed after the assassinations of Martin Luther King Jr. and John F. Kennedy (“Gun Control”). These assassinations were seen as things that could have been prevented if the guns weren 't allowed to be owned by these types of people. These overlapping statutes were passed barring certain individuals from owning guns (“Gun Control”). During this time period there weren’t many victories for those who opposed gun control because of the precedents set by the laws being