Second Amendment And The Constitutional Rights example essay topic

The second amendment to the constitution is one that seems to be infringed upon more and more as time goes on. This Amendment has turned into a very controversial topic over the past few years. The 2nd amendment of the constitution gives any citizen in the United States the right to own and posses guns. The right to bear arms in the United States has been challenged, and meet with great opposition. The reason that I choose to write on this topic is because of its very controversial nature. This amendment is a good case study on how the liberties bestowed on American citizens are being reinterpreted by today's government leaders.

The second Amendment was passed early in the United States history. The Amendment was proposed by Thomas Jefferson who is quoted as saying " Laws that forbid the carrying of arms... disarm only those who are neither inclined nor determined to commit crimes. Such laws make things worse for the assaulted and better for the assailants". The second amendment was developed to give citizens a right to self defense. This amendment was adopted along with nine other amendments known as the Bill of Rights. Along with the second amendment the Bill of Rights sets up the base of liberties that our country now operates on.

The main interest involved in the development of the second amendment would be the right of ordinary citizens to self defense. In the seventeen hundreds when this Amendment was adopted to the constitution, there was very little opposition to the amendment. The amendment was opposed by very few people, because owning a gun was very common at that time. One of the main advocates of this amendment was Thomas Jefferson. With his support and the time in which the Parr 2 amendment was proposed, the amendment was passed along with nine others. If this amendment would have been proposed in our life time it would undoubtedly have been meet with much more opposition.

With gun control being such a controversial issue in our lifetime, the second amendment is being interpreted and reinterpreted on an almost every day basis. With major crime and gun control problems in our country, the second amendment seems to always be under fire (No pun intended). Overall the amendment has changed very little throughout the history of the United States. The government has put some regulations on firearms, but they do not directly violate citizens 2nd amendment rights. A famous court case that deals with the second amendment would be the United States vs. Lewis.

In 1977 Lewis was arrested for intent to break and enter and on other misdemeanor charges in the state of Virginia. In Lewis's possession was a fire arm that had been deemed illegal to posses by the United States government. When charged for having the firearm he claimed that his right to posses a firearm had been violated. When taken to court a verdict of guilty was eventually reached, and it was deemed that Mr. Lewis's constitutional rights had not been violated. There are many current controversies surrounding the second amendment, and the constitutional rights that the 2nd amendment bestows on United States citizens.

With the plaguing problems of gun violence in our schools, homes, and streets the question of who should be able to own a gun has arisen. With gun rights activist squaring off against high ranking government officials over the right to own a gun, the second amendment has become very controversial. Today it is difficult to buy a gun in a store without an extensive background check, as well as a permit to own the firearm. With these new laws in place controversy over government regulation and Parr 3 gun control has grown.

On the one hand members of organizations such as the National Rifle Association believe that all citizens have the right to own any gun one could desire. The government with new gun regulations believe that not every person should be able to have access to guns. Both sides of this seemingly never ending debate make good points that should be heard. Over all the 2nd Amendment has achieved the goal that it was originally established for. This goal is to allow the citizens of the United States to have a defense against aggression and violence. This Amendment could be modified by not allowing everyone to own a gun.

I believe that the Amendment would better serve the nation if ex. criminals and violent offenders of the law could not have access to guns. If the Amendment was slightly modified it would better serve our country and its citizens.

Bibliography

1. Maier, Pauline. The Declaration of Independence and the Constitution of the United States. Bantam Books: New York City, 1998.
2. Morgan, Edmund. The Birth of the Republic 1763-1789. The U of Chicago Press: Chicago, 1957.
3. Rockwell, Stephen, and Peter Will. American Government Competition and Compromise. Mc Grow Hill: Boston, 2001.