After unanimously passing a resolution earlier this year stigmatizing gun owners and declaring the National Rifle Association as a Domestic Terrorist organization, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors is at it again. As their draconian policies have closed every single gun shop within the city, they now are striking out to politicize guns and gun owners once again. This time the Board will be considering a resolution to evaluate the public health threat of “panic buying” firearms and for county health officials to warn of the dangers associated with firearm ownership. This at a time when Americans are obtaining the means to defend themselves and their loved ones at a record pace.
As the old saying goes, never let a crisis go to waste, and that’s exactly how this resolution begins. By citing the COVID-19 crisis as creating the rush to purchase firearms and ammunition, and then blaming the NRA for inducing panic buying to increase corporate profits, the resolution denies the basic truth the current crisis illustrates: Americans believe in their right to defend themselves and will seek the available means to do so. The resolution shows how incredibly out of touch the San Francisco Board of Supervisors remain in a city that has been grossly mismanaged for decades. Instead of focusing on real issues, they would rather waste taxpayer time and money to once again blame guns for their problems.
While the San Francisco Board of Supervisors doesn’t have any gun shops to shut down, some of their neighbors have taken such actions, suspending the rights of Californians who are attempting to lawfully acquire firearms or ammunition. When there is uncertainty, people will attempt to secure those items they deem “essential,” and firearms are obviously among those items.
Our Constitutional rights are not up for negotiation, which is why the NRA has been working throughout the nation to protect the Second Amendment and our right to self-defense. In California, the NRA has partnered with other Second Amendment groups to file lawsuits in both Los Angeles and the Bay Area challenging the closure of gun stores. Such challenges will continue as long as elected officials attempt to undermine our rights during the ongoing emergency.
For updates on the COVID-19 crisis across the country, please visit https://www.nraila.org/coronavirus/.