Is Owning a Handgun an Individual Right?

Is Owning a Handgun an Individual Right?

The right to own a handgun has been debated heavily for the past century and still remains relevant to today’s society. Prior to 2008, the Supreme Court held that the 2nd amendment protected the collective right of Americans to bear arms. “In a decision nearly 70 years ago, the justices suggested (owning a handgun) was a collective right, not an individual right to bear arms.” (Temple-Raston, 2006) Yet after 2008, the court made a decision in the case of Heller vs. District of Columbia, that guaranteed Americans the right to own handguns in the District of Columbia region. It is my belief that handgun ownership remain protected as an individual right to American citizens as that of any other individual right as stated by the Constitution.
Since the ratification of the 2nd amendment in 1791, the issue of handgun ownership has been debated as whether or not the Framers intended the amendment to be interpreted as such. The amendment does state that a well-regulated militia be in place, but in today’s society it is not as relevant as the Revolutionary era. Today, if a man is drafted into military service, the army will provide him with weapons in which to defend himself. But in the Revolutionary era, if a man was called to service he had to provide his own form or weaponry. “The majority of justices said that the amendment protects as an individual’s right to possess a firearm unconnected with service in a militia and to use that firearm for lawful services, such as self-defense in the home.” (Temple-Raston, 2006)
The United States may try to issue a national gun prohibition but more than likely, our citizens will still find ways to break the law and get away with breaking it. An approximated “220 million or more guns now in the U.S.,” (Kopel and Wollstein, 2006) and can be found throughout. Possibly more than three-fourths, are unregistered and are illegally acquired and now owned. One of the questions that most that most of our society faces: Shouldn’t we be...

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