A comment on the NRA's history.

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AlanM
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A comment on the NRA's history.

Post by AlanM »

Just today I again saw a anti-gunner's comment online to the effect that it was only in the last half of the 20th century that the NRA was concerned with protecting the Second Amendment.

I've known this to be a false statement for decades due to the fact that I used to have in my possession (subsequently lost in a move) a copy of a 1930's issue of the American Rifleman which had in it an opinion piece about the, then current, US Attorney General pushing for gun legislation/laws that would violate the US Constitution. If I recall correctly the magazine was from the first half of the 1930's.

I just visited the current NRA history web page and found this paragraph concerning the early 20th century:
Through the association's magazine, The American Rifleman, members were kept abreast of new firearms bills, although the lag time in publishing often prevented the necessary information from going out quickly. In response to repeated attacks on the Second Amendment rights, NRA formed the Legislative Affairs Division in 1934. While NRA did not lobby directly at this time, it did mail out legislative facts and analyses to members, whereby they could take action on their own. In 1975, recognizing the critical need for political defense of the Second Amendment, NRA formed the Institute for Legislative Action, or ILA.
For some reason I recall seeing antis stating that the NRA became active in politics in the mid 1960's. The above would indicate that to not be true.

For an example of an anti NRA version of history there's this:
The Suprising Unknown History of the NRA
This page is so slanted I have a hard time reading it.

And some verifiable facts:
10 Surprising Facts About the NRA That You Never Hear
AlanM
There are no dangerous weapons; there are only dangerous men. - RAH
Four boxes to be used in defense of liberty: soap, ballot, jury, ammo - use in that order.
If you aren't part of the solution, then you obviously weren't properly dissolved.
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AlanM
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Re: A comment on the NRA's history.

Post by AlanM »

Yet another web page concerning the NRA's history:
The NRA Has Been Making the Same Slippery Slope Argument Since 1934

Re: Post WW1
In the aftermath of the war, the National Rifle Association had not yet developed into a full-fledged lobbying organization, but had already begun to articulate the ideology that defines the group today. Confronted with federal regulation that sought to restrict access to certain types of military-style firearms, as well as taxes on handguns, the NRA rallied its members in opposition. Its stance was less categorical than it is today, as the organization declared itself “absolutely favorable to reasonable legislation” that confined itself to submachine guns and sawed-off shotguns, exclusively. At the same time, the group was developing the argument that gun restrictions on any kind of firearm were the first step on a slippery slope to a federal registry and excessive gun taxes.
Yes, the NRA settled on the NFA taxing full auto firearms and short barreled shotguns to prevent federal regulation of ALL firearms.
AlanM
There are no dangerous weapons; there are only dangerous men. - RAH
Four boxes to be used in defense of liberty: soap, ballot, jury, ammo - use in that order.
If you aren't part of the solution, then you obviously weren't properly dissolved.
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Mr. Glock
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Re: A comment on the NRA's history.

Post by Mr. Glock »

It wasn't until the 1960's that gun control for all really became a national issue, and it had previously been around the edges or at the local level. Gun control started during JIm Crow to keep the southern black population unarmed or it was aimed at "criminals" like NFA 34. Average Americans finally realized that compromise on rights for safety was a raw deal, but this took some time.

The NRA didn't need to be as active in, say, 1919 because most Americans saw gun ownership as a natural, constitutional and civil right, simply put.
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