The document discusses the right to bear arms as established in the 2nd Amendment of the US Constitution. It provides background on influential thinkers like John Locke and how they shaped ideas around natural rights. It then examines each of the first 10 amendments of the Bill of Rights, including the 2nd Amendment's establishment of the right to bear arms. The document discusses debates around gun control and stricter laws, providing arguments on both sides of the issue and concluding that common sense restrictions could help protect human life, especially children, while still respecting gun ownership rights.

1. The Right to Bear Arms
Noor Pyarali

2. Since antiquity, many great thinkers
have contemplated what it means to
have rights, and indeed, what rights
are in themselves. One such great
thinker, John Locke, believed that
humans have natural, inalienable
rights. He stated that humans have
the right to life, liberty, and property.
Locke influenced Thomas Jefferson
who wrote in the Declaration of
Independence that man has the right
to life, liberty, and the pursuit of
happiness.
A right can be defined by “that which is due to anyone by just claim, legal guarantees,
moral principles.” (Dictionary.com)

3. The Constitution of the United States declares that its citizens
have rights; the first 10 amendments are known as the Bill of
Rights. The 1st amendment states that the people have the
right to freedom of religion, the right to free speech and
press, and the right to peaceably assemble and petition the
government. The 2nd amendment identifies that the people
have the right to bear arms. The 3rd amendment states that
the people do not have to share their homes in times of peace
with soldiers. The 4th amendment grants the people
protection from unreasonable searches and seizures. The 5th
amendment addresses due process, double jeopardy, and self-
incrimination. The 6th amendment states that the people
have a right to a trial by jury, can confront their accuser, be
granted a speedy, public trial, and have a right to counsel.
The 7th amendment states that the peoples’ right to a civil trial shall be preserved when the value in
controversy exceeds twenty dollars. The 8th amendment prohibits excessive bail and cruel and unusual
punishment. The 9th amendment states that not all rights are specifically enumerated in the
constitution and this does not mean that the people do not have rights not listed. The 10th amendment
identifies powers not reserved by the U.S are reserved for the States or to the people.

4. In order to understand what the 2nd amendment means, we must define its terms. Militia is defined
as “a part of the organized armed forces of a country; a body of citizens organized for military
service; or the whole body of able-bodied male citizens declared by law as being subject to call to
military service. The first part of this amendment implies the military use of arms. However, as it
continues with the right of the people to keep and bear arms, it seem that the subject has now
become the people in general. The natural interpretation of “bear arms” means “have weapons”
(Heller). The part that is unclear and undefined is what type of weapons fall under the right to bear
arms. The government has already placed certain restrictions on this right, in addition to other
constitutional rights, for the safety and well-being of the people.

5. Rights, even constitutional rights, can be limited by the
government if necessary for the safety of the people.
The first amendment, as addressed previously in this
tutorial, covers several natural rights, and one of those is
the right to free speech. The right to freedom of speech
grants the people to express themselves without
constraint and interference from the government.
However, the Supreme Court recognizes that the government
may prohibit some speech that calls for violence or the breach
of peace. The areas of speech that are not protected under the
1st amendment are the advocacy of illegal action, fighting
words, commercial speech, and obscenity. Hate speech is an
example of fighting words, which is not protected because of
the use of inflammatory words that may cause harm (Cornell)

6. There are two main advantages and reasons
people own guns. One purpose is for
protection. Some people own guns because it
makes them feel safer to be able to defend
themselves. An example of this, albeit rare,
is an incident that involved an alligator
attacking a young family member at night,
while the family was camping. The oldest
brother was able to retrieve his gun and
shoot the alligator before it got into the
water with the younger sibling. The alligator
only got a part of the child’s arm, but the life
of the child was saved (Animal Planet). The
second reason people own guns is for
pleasure; this includes hunting, target
shooting, and more.

7. Some of the disadvantages of owning a gun include,
gun-related accidents, which may sometime involve
those we love, our family and friends. Gun-related
crimes, such as robberies, shootings, and mass
shootings are another disadvantage relating to guns.
Further an individual’s gun may be stolen to commit
crimes.

9. The statistics on the previous screen are from the Washington Post, in which the numbers
are reported by the United Nations. In the image, the viewer can see that the United
States has the highest per capita rate of gun-related crime than other developed nations.
The gun murder rate in the United States is about 20 times the average more than other
developed nations, meaning that Americans are 20 times more likely to murdered by a gun
than people from other developed countries. After the Sandy Hook Elementary school
shooting that left 27 people dead including 20 children, debates have been ignited about
what should be done about U.S gun laws.
On February 12, 2013, President Obama State of the Union speech demanded a
vote on gun control bills. President Obama said that Americans, an overwhelming majority
of Americans, are coming together and are calling for common sense gun laws and reform,
while police chiefs are requesting assistance from the government in getting weapons of
war and excessive ammunition magazines off of the streets because the officers are
frustrated and tired of being outgunned.

10. Arguments against stricter gun laws may claim
that if more people were armed then more people
would be protected against gun violence. Other
arguments include the claim that if certain guns
become illegal then people will still have access to
and buy those same guns, whether on the black
market or by accessing guns illegally imported
from other countries, such as Mexico. Some say
that if a person has a desire to kill someone then
they will still find a way to do it. Some argue that
restricting gun rights is unconstitutional because it
is unjustified.

11. “Every day, eight children are killed by guns,” is a shocking and deeply disturbing statement
by the Brady Campaign. Guns may still be illegally available on the streets but that does not
mean we should do nothing to better protect our children and ourselves. Owning more guns
does not protect us as well as stricter, common sense gun laws would.

12. My vote is in favor of supporting stricter,
common sense guns laws that would
require more thorough background checks
and that would limit the types of guns
available to the people. It is my belief that
military style weapons should not be on
American streets. Our police officers
should not be outgunned. This is a
justified restriction because it would
better protect the people from harm. The
people still have their right to bear arms,
protect themselves, and to purse their
pleasures with hunting.
If human life is better protected , especially the innocent lives of children, then it is
worth restricting my rights of owning an assault weapon. Other constitutional rights have been
justly restricted in order to prevent violence. People may disagree with me, but I respect their
views. This is part of the beauty of the democratic process.

13. References
Bradleycampaign.org
Cornell.edu
Dictonary.com
Heller Case, District of Columbia v. Heller
Washingtonpost.com