2nd Amendment Rights vs. Gun Control in the Inner-City

Last week I attended Congressman Ron Paul's (Campaign for Liberty) Rally for the Republic, in Minneapolis, MN. Now I have always been against gun control, but what I heard at this event help to further shape my perspective.

In a statement dated March 12, 2007, Ron Paul said:

In the 1700s, militias were local groups made up of ordinary citizens. They were not under federal control! As a practical matter, many of them were barely under the control of colonial or state authorities. When the 2^nd Amendment speaks of a "well-regulated militia," it means local groups of individuals operating to protect their own families, homes, and communities. They regulated themselves because it was necessary and in their own interest to do so.

In many inner-city communities across the Country, we are subject to police-state policies and the tyranny of the police force. In DC, we have been subjected to so-called "Neighborhood Safety Zones," the ever-present hum of Police Helicopters, and the intrusive presence of strobe lighting.

Governor Mike Huckabee states:

Our Founding Fathers, having endured the tyranny of the British Empire, wanted to guarantee our God-given liberties. They devised our three branches of government and our system of checks and balances. But they were still concerned that the system could fail, and that we might someday face a new tyranny from our own government. They wanted us to be able to defend ourselves, and that’s why they gave us the Second Amendment. They knew that a government facing an armed populace was less likely to take away our rights, while a disarmed population wouldn’t have much hope. As Ronald Reagan reminded us, “Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction.” Without our Second Amendment rights, all of our other rights aren’t inalienable, they’re just “on loan” from the government.

Former Minnesota Governor, Jesse Ventura also reminds us that the Second Amendment is not about hunting but about the ability of the people to "rise up" if the government "gets out of control."

And yes, there is crime but Mike Huckabee address this:

I once saw a bumper sticker that said, “Criminals prefer unarmed victims.” Criminals will always find a way to get guns. By disarming our law-abiding citizens, we take away the strongest deterrent to violent criminals - the uncertainty that they don’t know who is helpless and who is armed. Our law enforcement officials can’t be everywhere, all the time. Lawfully-armed citizens back them up and prevent robberies, rapes, and the murder of innocents. Right after Katrina, with law enforcement non-existent, many victims were able to protect their lives, their homes, and their precious supplies of food and water only because they were armed.

All of the violence in the Trinidad Community - for example - would not be possible if law-abiding DC residents had guns. What we don't need is the police-state of so-called "Neighborhood Safety Zones." If - for instance - the original Black Panther Party were in place, there would be no crime in Trinidad...there would be no influx of gang activity. And, if the original Black Panther Party were in place, the police would think twice about invading our communities.

Gun control is not the answer! As Ron Paul goes on to state:

Gun control historically serves as a gateway to tyranny. Tyrants from Hitler to Mao to Stalin have sought to disarm their own citizens, for the simple reason that unarmed people are easier to control. Our Founders, having just expelled the British army, knew that the right to bear arms serves as the guardian of every other right. This is the principle so often ignored by both sides in the gun control debate. Only armed citizens can resist tyrannical government.

Unarmed, the Black Community is always in danger of being invaded by government forces who infringe upon the people's freedom. And, it's only in the Black Community where gun control policies are so prevalent...so rampant. We must wonder why. But, there is no excuse for usurping a people's Constitutional rights...there is no justification for these policies.

Again, to quote Governor Huckabee:

Other candidates believe gun control should be determined geographically, but Second Amendment rights belong to individuals, not cities or states. Your Second Amendment rights don’t change when you change your address.

DC is Chocolate City, and we must defend it.

Ghetto Birds in the Sky...I Can Fly Twice as High...

If you live in the Trinidad Neighborhood, these signs have probably become familiar. Somehow, despite the people's Fourth Amendment Constitutional Right to be free from unlawful searches and seizures, the DC Metropolitan Police have found another way to take advantage of DC residents: the Neighborhood Safety Zone.

According to the MPD website:

The Neighborhood Safety Zone initiative has been developed to help increase security for those who live in high-crime areas around the city and to help residents reclaim their communities. The program will authorize the Metropolitan Police Department to set up public safety checks to help safeguard community members and create safer neighborhoods in the District by increasing police presence aimed at deterring crime.

So, the key to deterring crime is to terrorize the community? How successful have check-points been in the old Soviet Union? Are they stopping rockets from entering Jerusalem? Oh - maybe the goal is to re-enact Tienanmen Square?

How do residents reclaim the community if the police have turned it into a militarized zone? If and when these zones are demilitarized, will not the crime resurface?

How can anyone feel safe with "ghetto birds" buzzing overhead, peering through their windows? Several nights this week, I have witnessed these flocks of "ghetto birds" shining their bright lights as they circle various neighborhoods like vultures seeking their prey...waiting for someone to fall so they can feed on the community.

My father is a retired Chief Deputy US Marshall, former Chief of Police who designed a new police force. He has over 30 years of law enforcement experience. So, I trust his insights...

Police presence is needed - desperately. But, police presence is not helicopters with bright lights, sirens blaring, and domineering officers drunk with authority. Police presence is the old Police Athletic League (PALs). Yet, for some reason the District's PAL has not even updated any of its information since March of 2007. Police presence is officers living in the Police Districts in which they work, so that they are part of - and tied to) the community.

That is what Police Presence means in White communities...not so-called "Neighborhood Safety Zones." DC is Chocolate City, ya'll and we must demand better treatment.