For decades, the image of gun ownership in America was white, rural and Republican, but that’s been changing, according to gun clubs, trainers, Second Amendment advocates and academic researchers.

They say more liberals, people of color and LGBTQ folks have been buying guns for years and particularly since Trump’s reelection in 2024. This story was based on more than 30 interviews. David Phillips is on the training team of the Liberal Gun Club, which has chapters in more than 30 states and provides a haven for liberals to train and learn about guns. He says club membership has grown from 2,700 in November to 4,500 today. Requests for training, he says, have quintupled.

“The concern is about the supporters of the right-wing who feel that they have been given permission to run roughshod at least, if not commit outright violence against people they don’t like,” Phillips says.

  • ChunkMcHorkle@lemmy.worldEnglish
    12·
    7 days ago

    I thought that was a good question so I looked it up, not least because one of the right’s oft-repeated accusations has been that “the libruls want to take our guns!” which to me means that the right has been thinking about taking them all along.

    Historically, authoritarian regimes are NOT big on letting citizens defend themselves against government, which is how the US got the Second Amendment to start with, so I’m still low-key convinced that the long-term strategy here is to create an environment of regular stochastic terrorism until the military is fully on board, and then to react to that public carnage by declaring all privately-held firearms illegal as part of the move to full martial law.

    But in the meantime, as the Brady Campaign, a long-established gun control group, says, for Project 2025 the plan is “Guns everywhere.”

    Project 2025 also seems to have a particular aversion to state-level concealed carry laws, and wants to overturn those as well.

    There is a good amount of information out there if you’re interested in looking further but that’s the gist of it. Project 2025 = guns are good, and lots of 'em . . . at least for now.

    • Gammelfisch@lemmy.world
      2·
      6 days ago

      Thank you and +1! I find it odd that Project 2025 supports “LIBERAL” gun policies, because when Mango F’n Mussolini goes for the full power grab, he must control the guns.

    • MonkeMischief@lemmy.today
      4·
      7 days ago

      Good on you for being so helpful. You’re what’s good about this community. ❤️

      Project 2025 = guns are good, and lots of 'em

      (Sarcastically) Finally, an unexpectedly bipartisan opinion!

      I imagine they had it in their heads that all of those left-of-fascist are cowering hoplophobes who won’t defend themselves when abused.

      This will bite them in the ass, hopefully soon before or after the tsunami of “find out” from their other ideas does.

      I’m of the firm belief that our current society’s issue with weapons is based in a distinct and highly politicized lack of education and sense of responsibilities around them.

      The more we educate and train as a community, the better prepared we’ll be to protect ourselves and our neighbors, and the more the the blowhard cowards who need a big bad boss to do their thinking for them will think twice.