Too often, news headlines detail tragic mass shootings, whether premeditated or committed in the heat of a terrible moment. Inevitably, there is a subsequent discussion of our nation’s gun rights, among the most liberal in the world.
Most adults, and many children, can recite the substance of the Second Amendment of the Constitution, the primary source of our rights to own arms.
The text is as follows: A well regulated militia being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed.
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Questions arise whether or not the Framers of the Constitution meant for arms to be borne only in the context of a militia or whether it was a general statement that the right to bear arms outside of a militia shall not be infringed. Many other interpretive questions have been raised about the language over the years.
There have numerous judicial attempts over the years to clarify the amendment. Notably, Justice Antonin Scalia attempted to clarify the Amendment in District of Columbia v. Heller (2008). Nevertheless, it is not entirely clear what the Second Amendment means and there appears to be ground for reasonable minds to disagree.
No matter if you are a gun rights supporter or opponent, one thing remains fundamentally certain: Americans have the ability, should they choose, to amend the Constitution and to modify, supplement, or eliminate the Second Amendment.
In fact, the Constitution has been amended a total of 27 times, the last coming in 1992.
The procedure is as follows: a proposed amendment must first be adopted by two-thirds majorities in both the House and Senate or adopted through a national convention, called by Congress on the application of two-thirds of the state legislatures.
Next, the proposed amendment must be ratified by three-fourths of the states through their legislatures or through state ratifying conventions. Generally states have seven (7) years from the date of the amendment’s submission to ratify. (However, it took 202 years to ratify the 27th amendment).
Clearly, editing, supplementing or erasing the Second Amendment would be very difficult in today’s political climate. Regardless, it may be the only way to clarify an important and controversial, provision in the Constitution.
