Posted on 10/01/2001 6:51:42 PM PDT by TERMINATTOR
A Petition for Enforcement
of the Second Amendment
to the Constitution of the United States
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Gun Rights: Time for Federal Action, Not Just Words
Join this Demand for Enforcement of the Second Amendment
IMPORTANT NOTE: This article concerns the Petition for Enforcement of the Second Amendment to the Constitution. While the Petition specifies offenses committed in the State of California, it directly involves the rights of all Americans. If the project outlined below is successful it will restore YOUR Second Amendment rights as well, regardless of where you live. Your immediate attention and support are therefore crucial.
On many occasions the U.S. Justice Department has sent teams of lawyers to force states, municipalities, agencies, and officials to obey civil rights statutes, resulting in laws being overturned and in legal actions against individuals.
Now that we have an Attorney General who has stated unequivocally that Americans have an individual right to own and use firearms, we intend to see his office used to enforce that right.
We have charged the state of California with violating our Second Amendment rights, and are formally requesting that Attorney General John Ashcroft put a stop to it, now. Our list of violations, in petition form, is intended to force a ruling on all aspects of the Second Amendment.
We ask YOU to print out this petition, have it signed by as many people as possible, and mail the original signature sheet(s) to us at the address below. Contact national, local and state gun organizations, whether or not you belong to them, as well as gun shops, gun shows, firing ranges, etc., and ask them to endorse this effort and alert their members/customers to it. By doing so, YOU can help ensure that Mr. Ashcroft hears more voices than he can ignore.
California is the state we chose because it is the largest in population, has tremendous political influence, and has many gun "laws" that are blatantly unconstitutional. However, if we are successful, the precedent set in this action would affect all states. Of course, there's nothing to stop you from using our petition as a template to demand action in your state as well.
For the first time in decades we have an Attorney General who understands that the Second Amendment recognizes an individual right. But if George Bush does not win the next election Mr. Ashcroft will be gone. Timing is critical and the gravity of our situation is real. We have a narrow window of opportunity to act, and we must do it now.
Now is the time to put and end to anti-gun, anti-self defense "laws". Now is the time to force municipalities and states to restore the free exercise of our rights instead of using our tax money to attack those rights or to file frivolous anti-gun lawsuits.
Now is not the time to feel safe or to relax our efforts. This is especially true in this time of national distress, when the tendency of government - and many citizens - is to restrict rather than promote individual rights.
It is time to establish once and for all that we have a right to own and use guns, that we can't be required to be licensed or registered, and don't need some bureaucrat's permission to own them.
Funding long-term Second Amendment lawsuits will be extremely expensive. We intend to circumvent that difficulty by placing the burden of upholding our Bill of Rights where it belongs - on the federal government, with its virtually unlimited resources.
If you're tired of being on the defensive then help us do something about it. Let's strike back hard against those who are violating our rights and heritage. It is our responsibility to pass on to our children the same freedoms that we inherited.
We do not know what result this petition to Mr. Ashcroft will produce, but we do know that if we do nothing, we will achieve nothing. We need your immediate support. Please print out the petition, get it signed, and mail the original signature sheet(s) to us as soon as possible.
Please join us. Thank you.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
I'm not from California? Why should I care what happens to them?
We're not from Manhattan, but an attack there affects us all. Likewise, the denial of Constitutional rights in one part of America should rightly outrage all Americans. If the Attorney General can establish precedent in California, it will apply nationwide, and can be used to overturn oppressive and unconstitutional "laws" in your state.
California was picked because of its oppressive "laws", and because it can be definitively proven that all means of obtaining redress from the executive, legislative and judicial branches of government have been exhausted, and the exercise of the right to keep and bear arms has been effectively nullified. California is also ideal as we have evidence -- signed by California government officials mentioned in the petition -- that shows them having said the second amendment is a collective right after AG Ashcroft said it's an individual right.
I'm not going to sign because I disagree with ________.
Our Declaration of Independence and Constitution resulted from many compromises in scope and language before all signatories would agree to ratification. Obviously, when putting out a document for public endorsement, it is not possible to anticipate the concerns of each person. If your concerns are such that you simply cannot sign the petition unless they are addressed, we have two suggestions:
1) Mark additions, deletions or changes that you require, sign the Petition, and send it to us -- we will ensure that the Attorney General receives your marked changes along with your signature.
2) Create your own petition letter to the Attorney General specifying what you want.
3) You can also use this effort as a template, and create a Petition that more specifically describes grievances in YOUR state. Not only do we hope to see this type of effort take place for other states, but we will help you promote the effort, as well. Meanwhile, we urge you to sign this Petition and press others to do the same.
The intent here was to keep the scope of the Petition narrow and focused, rather than defining every possible grievance or remedy. For many activists, CCW licensing is seen as an infringement on our right to bear arms, and dangerously "legitimizes" government abridgements of that right -- they seek nothing less than "Vermont-style" concealed carry, i.e., no permits are needed. Others see CCW's as a pragmatic incremental means of obtaining protection while at the same time legitimizing the practice in the eyes of the general public. Rather than stall this effort over that debate, our focus is to get RKBA legally recognized and enforced as an individual right, and as a right to keep and bear military-style firearms.
I don't want my name on a government list.
Your name is already on government lists. This Petition is no more or less controversial than writing a letter to your congressman, and is protected activity under the First Amendment. Anyone who will not stand up for their rights because they are afraid of repercussions from authority has already abdicated their rights. Are you a free American? If so, you will join us. If not, don't you think it's about time you became one?
I don't want my name on a junk mail/spam list.
The information we are asking you for is your name, city and state -- plus an optional space for your email address. This information will not be used for any commercial purpose or given to anyone besides Attorney General Ashcroft. As this Petition is a joint venture between Citizens of America and KeepandBearArms.com, you may receive an occasional email update on the Petition's progress if you include an email address, and your name will be removed from that list if you ask us to do so. Otherwise, no one from KABA or COA will contact you -- and nobody else but the Attorney General will see your information.
1) Read the Petition:
2) Sign the petition and get your friends to do so -- plus, urge them to copy it and bring their friends on board.
3) Contact gun rights organizations/clubs you belong to, and urge them to join the effort, and pass the word along to their members.
4) Contact firearm-related businesses you patronize, make them aware of the Petition, and get them to sign on and encourage their customers to support it/spread the word.
Where should I mail my completed signature sheet?
David Codrea, PO Box 4152, Redondo Beach CA 90277-1750.
This address is also found on the signature page of the petition.
How can I contact you about this effort?
Send emails to: AshcroftPetition@KeepAndBearArms.com. Due to high volume of emails, we cannot guarantee a personal response to every email, and we do ask for patience.
Not for this effort -- but donations to Citizens of America and KeepandBearArms.com are always welcome. We urge you to spend time on those sites and, if you like what you see, help keep them going.
This is a waste of time -- I don't think it will work.
What will? Do you have a better idea? We have been lobbying our legislators, writing letters, going to court, and look at how many of our rights have been eroded over the past twenty years. If they continue at this pace, what will we have left twenty years from now?
It's certain that if we do nothing, we will get nothing. Is that what you want to do, nothing?
Even if it doesn't "work", at least we will know that the federal government, despite Mr. Ashcroft's stated belief, intends to let our right to keep and bear arms disappear -- we submit that knowing this will at least give us a better picture of where we stand, so that we can formulate and plan new strategies.
And how can it hurt? Are you truly unwilling to devote a few minutes of your time to this? And what if it "works"? Will you really want to feel like others did your work for you?
If this is so great, why isn't the NRA supporting it?
This is a new effort -- they aren't aware of it, but we intend to inform them, as well as other gun rights organizations, and encourage them to join us.
Perhaps they will, if enough members contact them. Why not do so?
What is the deadline to submit the Petition?
1) As soon as you have a page full, unless you are immediately going to fill another one, please send it. We will periodically report the numbers of petitions we have received.
2) We are shooting for completion by the end of the calendar year -- December 31, 2001 -- but we will continue sending batches of signatures to AG Ashcroft as long as we receive them.
I think my representative should see this. Why are you just sending this to John Ashcroft as opposed to other politicians?
We intend to send a copy of the petition and signatures to President Bush also.
However, the petition is addressed to Attorney General Ashcroft because he has gone on record saying the Second Amendment is an individual right, and he oversees the federal agency that is tasked with enforcing civil rights laws. That said, in addition to sending us your signed Petition, we also think it's a fine idea for you to send a copy to any politician you think may be willing to support this, along with your personal letter urging them to do so.
Doesn't a petition require more information about the signer than you're asking for?
No, this is not a "legal" document per se, as in the case of a referendum that must comply with such regulations -- it is really no different than "petitioning" your congressman via a letter or email, all in accordance with our First Amendment right to petition for redress. Were this something like a ballot initiative, the legal requirements you cite would apply -- but this is basically just a group of citizens, hopefully a massive group of citizens, all adding their voices. We originally did include addresses, but decided to forego asking for them due to concerns expressed in re privacy and security.
The Petition authors will be providing Attorney General Ashcroft and President Bush their full names, addresses, phone numbers, and email addresses.
| QUOTES TO REMEMBER | |
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- Enforcer
That's not to say another lily-livered statist Donkey - like Kerrey, Gephardt, etc. - doesn't have a chance, so you're correct in saying (or implying) that we shouldn't take W's reelection for granted. That's precisely why we all have much work to do in the next three years, and hopefully we can be instumental in the overturning of every single unconstitutional anti-fireams law now on the books.
In Liberty,
Enforcer
Breaking: US Congress Subpoena Orders Ashcroft To Release Clinton Evidence on Sept. 11, 2001
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