Free Republic

Does your state support your 2nd Amendment rights – or make it exceedingly difficult to keep and bear arms? We’ve ranked the worst states to be a gun owner by analyzing each state’s current laws, upcoming laws, concealed carry guidelines, self-defense statutes, and 2A-centric taxes. #1 Hawaii #2 California #3 New York #4 Illinois #5 New Jersey #6 Connecticut #7 Maryland #8 Massachusetts #9 Rhode Island #10 Michigan #11 Washington #12 Minnesota #13 Colorado #14 Nebraska #15 New Mexico #16 Pennsylvania #17 Oregon #18 Delaware #19 Wisconsin #20 Vermont #21 Virginia #22 Nevada #23 Ohio #24 Maine #25 North Carolina

Report Highlights: • The U.S. has more than 82 million lawful firearm owners. • 53% of the 21 states with restrictive concealed carry laws have violent crime rates higher than the national average. • 55% of states with a violent crime rate below the national average have permitless carry. • Between 60,000 and 2.5 million Americans use firearms for self-defense each year. • 40% of criminals convicted of crimes while in possession of a firearm were already prohibited from carrying firearms. • A 2018 study shows that 68% of those convicted of crimes while in possession of a firearm were...

Report highlights: • An average of 10,252 firearms were used in homicides between 2015 and 2019. Handguns were involved in 59% of homicides in 2020. • Handguns were used in 62% of homicides between 2015 and 2019. • Most mass shooters used firearms chambered in 9mm and .223 Remington in 2023 and 2024 (to date), resulting in 45% of all deaths. • 1 in 6 criminal assaults involving a firearm results in death. • Gunshot victims were 4.5 times more likely to die when shot by larger caliber bullets (.357 magnum, .40, .44 magnum, .45, 10 mm, and 7.62 ×...

Report Highlights: • There are 26 states with permitless concealed carry freedoms • Washington, D.C., has the highest rate of firearm-related homicides even though it has strict carry laws • 83% of states with permitless concealed carry have a homicide rate at or below the national average • 45% of states with no permitless concealed carry laws have homicide rates above the national average • 3 out of 5 of the safest five states in the U.S. have permitless concealed carry • 2 out of 5 of the top five most dangerous states in the U.S. have permitless concealed carry,...

We graded Illinois’ candidates based on their previous 2A voting records, public statements on their constituents owning firearms, and their willingness to focus on 2A issues. Given our research on these criteria, we’ve assigned the following grades to those currently running for office: A – Joshua Loyd, James Marter B – Jerry Evans, Joe McGraw C – Mark Rice D – Nikki Budzinski F – Raja Krishnamoorthi, Bill Foster, Lauren Underwood, Eric Sorensen

Pennsylvania is a key battleground state in the 2024 elections, with one federal Senate seat up for grabs and 17 Congressional House districts. The following candidates have been graded based on their willingness to protect and secure Americans' Second Amendment rights: A - Ryan Mackenzie, Scott Perry, Mike Kelly B - David McCormick D - Brian Fitzpatrick, Neil Young, James Hayes, Preston Nouri, Rob Mercuri F - Bob Casey Jr., Ashley Ehasz, Chrissy Houlahan, Susan Wild, Matt Cartwright, Janelle Stelson, Summer Lee, Chris Deluzio

As the political climate heats up surrounding gun control and legislation, more Americans are buying firearms today than six years ago. In the past twenty years, gun ownership has risen slightly among women and Hispanics while it has decreased among men. Report Highlights: • Gun ownership in America increased 28% from 1994 to 2023. • Based on NICS background data and manufacturing records, it is estimated that there are 393 million civilian-owned firearms in the U.S. • Only 6.06 million firearms are registered in America (NFA registrations and states with permits to purchase) • Estimates show that 82,880,000 people own...

Key Statistics: • There have been 196 accidental deaths related to firearms so far in 2023. • Accidental shooting deaths have declined from 1,491 per year (1979-1998) to an average of 606 (1999-2023). • 728 accidental shootings (including injuries or death) occur on average yearly. • 1% of all firearm-related deaths in 2022 were unintentional. • Individuals aged 14-30 are consistently more likely to die of accidental shootings than any other age group.

We graded Alabama's candidates based on their previous 2A voting record, public statements on their constituents owning firearms, and their willingness to focus on 2A issues. Given our research on this criteria, we've assigned the following grades: A - Caroleene Dobson - Running for U.S. House District 2 B - Dick Brewbaker - Running for U.S. House District 2 D - Robin Litaker - Running for U.S. House District 7 F - Terrycina Sewell - Running for U.S. House District 7

Here are the highlights: A - Ted Cruz, Brandon Herrara, Jay Furman B - Monica De La Cruz, Mayra Flores C - Lazaro Garza Jr. D - Dan Crenshaw, Peter Filler, Tony Gonzales, Henry Cuellar, Vicente Gonzalez Jr. F - Colin Allred, Michelle Vallejo

Here are the highlights: A - Kat Cammack, Cory Mills, Jose Castillo, Adianis Morales B - Anna Paulina Luna C - Tatiana Fernandez D - Rick Scott, Mario Diaz Balart, Maria Elvira Salazar F - Debbie Mucarsal-Powell, Tom Wells, Darren Soto, Tony D’Arrigo

• In 2021, there were 10,048 injury-related deaths (individuals between the ages <1-17). 2,590 of those deaths involved firearms. • 62% of child injury-related deaths included mechanisms other than firearms in 2021. • Firearms accounted for less than 25% of all injury-related juvenile deaths in 2021. • 1,590 adolescents nationwide committed suicide in 2021. Of those, 790 suicides involved firearms. • There were 2,220 homicides among the <1-17 age group in 2021. Firearms were suspected in 1,503 of those homicides. • There were 161 more adolescent homicides (all methods) in 2021 than in 2020. • There were 93 school shootings...

• There have been 2,646 school shooting incidents in the U.S. since 1966. Of those, 2,205 (94%) occurred after the 1990 School Zone Safety Act (Amended in 1995). • There are 1,325 total State Gun Laws per this 2022 report. • The Federal government has been enacting Federal Firearm regulations since 1934. • The correlation between population density and school shootings is more profound in population density than in firearm legislation. • There is no standard “School shooting” definition in the U.S. The Secret Service defines targeted attacks, while most data includes incidents when a firearm is brandished, fired, or...

The sheer volume of firearms in the United States is a point of contention for almost every American. Some believe we have too few, while others believe we have too many. Nonetheless, firearms are a large part of American culture. We value our liberties, the natural right to self-defense, the inherent check on state power an armed populace offers, and the heritage which we pass down from generation to generation. Whether an individual defines freedom as a life without firearms or a life without government interference, we can all agree that some states do not support gun ownership. Whether it's...

National Average Violent crime rate - 366.7 violent crimes per 100K people in the US nationwide in 2019. Washington, D.C., had the highest violent crime rate in 2022, with 999.8 crimes per 100,000 people. 89% of firearms used in crimes were obtained illegally, per a 2016 BJS report. Of the 26,000 US homicides in the US in 2021, 60% (15,702) occurred in Metro and Fringe Metro areas. Violent crime nationwide decreased by 1% from 1,326,600 in 2020 to 1,313,200 in 2021, with robbery decreasing by 8.6%, lowering the national average. Violent crime rates in urban areas were 24.5 per 1,000...

In the run up to the 2012 election, both President Obama and Governor Romney downplayed the topic of gun control – even though Americans were on pace to buy more firearms than ever before. Because neither candidate was an avid shooter, special interest groups such as the NRA and the Brady Campaign dominated much of the campaign rhetoric. With this presidency came huge responsibility to the Second Amendment, as the previous four years had seen two high-profile 2A cases narrowly decided by split 5-4 decisions. President Obama’s victory ended up resulting in two appointments to the Supreme Court – Sonia...

There are few American actors more iconic than Clint Eastwood. His iconic "Man With No Name" character is the face of the American West for a generation of men. Dirty Harry is perhaps the most recognizable fictional police officer in American history. And the man who played them? Well, he spent some time as a small-town mayor in California.

“Certainly one of the chief guarantees of freedom under any government, no matter how popular and respected, is the right of the citizens to keep and bear arms. [...] the right of the citizens to bear arms is just one guarantee against arbitrary government and one more safeguard against a tyranny which now appears remote in America, but which historically has proved to be always possible.” – Rep. Hubert H. Humphrey “The possession of arms by the people is the ultimate warrant that government governs only with the consent of the governed.” – Jeffrey R. Snyder, "A Nation of Cowards"...

Respected for their discipline, honor and ability to face the most intense situations in the name of liberty, the U.S. military knows a thing or two about surviving combat. These are some of our favorite quotes from our armed forces. “Engage your brain before you engage your weapon.” – General James Mattis “If I always appear prepared, it is because before entering an undertaking, I have meditated long and have foreseen what might occur. It is not genius where reveals to me suddenly and secretly what I should do in circumstances unexpected by others; it is thought and preparation.” –...

For the Founding Fathers, the Revolutionary War was not simply a matter of principle – it was a matter of life and death. “Give me liberty or give me death” was, after the Declaration of Independence, not a statement of political radicalism, but a simple recognition of the facts. If the Founders had failed in their bid for a new and independent republic, it is very likely that they all would have been executed for treason. After the Declaration of Independence, there was no going back. The only paths in front of the Founders were victory or death. They understood...