The Right to Bear Arms in the US

The debate about the constitutional right to bear arms in the US still is ongoing today although the second amendment of the American constitution was done over two centuries ago. The matter is not only an accidental political issue that soon or later will disappear from the political arena. There is rather a cultural aspect in the matter that is rooted in American culture, that is, people’s right to bear arms. However, there are different views on the issue that varies between critical and anti-gun policies and pro-gun policies.  

The right to bear arms in the US is stated in the second amendment of the American constitution with almost no right for authorities to infringe this right nor a clear regulation of how this right to be used. The second amendment reads as follows: ”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.” (Constitution of the United States). However, this right has resulted in negative social consequences and phenomena such as mass shootings and using arms by minors. In simpler words, this right resulted in people losing their lives and exaggerated use of guns in the US according to Huges (2019). Therefore, anti-gun groups aim to reduce the loose possibilities of using guns in society and consequently reduce the negative consequences, while, at the same time, giving the authorities stronger legal abilities to infringe this right when needed. 

Despite the fact that this seems to be a rational solution for the matter of mass shootings and the deadly consequences that can derive from bearing arms, the matter is way more complicated than just issuing a regulation about the matter. Mainly, the article in the US constitution gives unlimited right to bear arms while leaving authorities with not too many tools to regulate using these arms. That is, there is a legal obligation on authorities to not infringe this right which is the cornerstone in the debate of supporters of pro-gun policies. That is, supporters of pro-gun policies argue that this legal obligation is not to be infringed by authorities or anyone else. Furthermore, this side of the debate claims that the solution is not by infringing or regulating the matter but there are more effective ways to tackle the negative social phenomena deriving from using guns freely in society. Therefore, there are several suggestions about how to tackle the matter, according to Lang & Selin (2021). 

In this regard, the matter of bearing arms freely in the US has been taken before courts, and courts’ rule came in favor of the unrestricted right to bear arms in the US. These cases before American courts constitute precedents that authorities and law enforcement can rely on in the future. It is as simple as that, the constitution of the US emphasizes the right to bear arms while still does not restrict this right by any means. 

Finally, the debate about the right of bearing arms has two sides. Supporters of pro-gun policies discuss the matter from a pragmatic point of view and on a legal basis developed upon what the US constitution states in this matter. On the other side, anti-gun debaters discuss the matter from a societal perspective based on the reality that in the US all mass shootings and crimes happen as a consequence of this unrestricted right. Regardless of what one believes in this issue, the second amendment still is functional and until it is changed, there is not a lot of space to change in the matter right now while the debate still is ongoing. 

Sources

Cong. Rsch. Serv., Constitution of the United States: Analysis and Interpretation, https://constitution.congress.gov/constitution/amendment-2/ 

Hughes, R., 2019. US gun debate: Four dates that explain how we got here. [online] bbc.com. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-42055871  

Lang, Z. and Selin, J., 2021. In gun debate, both sides have evidence to back them up. [online] the conversation.com. https://theconversation.com/in-gun-debate-both-sides-have-evidence-to-back-them-up-158118