The Pros And Cons Of Stricter Gun Control Laws

Perhaps one of the most debated topics in the United States is the issue of gun control. Heated debates arguing both for and against stricter gun control policies have raged for decades and have been hot button issues for many politicians during campaign speeches. Supporters of strict gun control laws believe this is the best way to protect citizens; however this logic fails to recognize a crucial point. Enacting and enforcing strict gun laws restricts access to guns only for law abiding citizens who will follow the legal process of obtaining a gun. Gun laws do very little to reduce the amount of illegal firearms nor will it reduce the amount of crime that takes place with a firearm. This is simply because criminals do not care whether the gun they just purchased was through legal channels or in a dark alley from the back of a van. Not only are gun laws ineffective in reducing guns owned by criminals, but they infringe on the rights bestowed to citizens under the second amendment. Gun control denies citizens their constitutional right to own a firearm, does not prevent criminals from obtaining guns and does not …show more content…
It was something so important to the founding fathers that it was included in the US Constitution. The second amendment grants “the right of the people to keep and bear arms” and this right “shall not be infringed” (U.S. Const. amend. II). While this was written with no constraints, there are numerous laws that now limit various aspects of gun ownership such as who can own and purchase a gun as well as imposing waiting periods on the purchase of a firearm. The reasons for such regulations fall under the heading of public safety, however due to the limitation this causes to ownership rights it violates the Second Amendment as well in addition to infringing upon the right to self-defense and deny people a sense of