Weekly Spotlight 10/2-10/9/22
USCCA-FSL Aims to Put Real Faces & Stories Behind Record Gun Sales Through New National Ad Campaign
It’s no secret that some in the national media, anti-gun politicians at both the state and federal level and anti-gun special interests groups funded by billionaires like Michael Bloomberg are working hard to diminish the importance of responsible gun ownership. They want to demonize gun owners in the eyes of other Americans in order to advance their own political agenda.
We believe it’s critical that we push back and get the facts, faces and stories of responsible gun ownership in front of the American people.
According to a new report by Crime Prevention Research Center (CPRC), even the FBI is undercounting how often armed citizens have jumped in to save the day by thwarting active-shooter situations over the last eight years. The CPRC report, as reported by Fox News, found that over 34% of active shootings were thwarted by armed citizens between 2014 and 2021, while FBI data contradicted this, showing only 4.4% of active shootings were stopped by a law-abiding, armed citizen. The report also found about 360 active shooter incidents took place between 2014 and 2021, 124 of which were thwarted by armed citizens. During this same time period, the FBI only reported 252 active shooter incidents occurred, 11 of which were thwarted by armed citizens.
According to another report by Fox News, there have been “at least 12 instances over the last two months across the country of armed individuals thwarting attacks and crime by firing a gun or just simply displaying it to a suspect.”
One store owner who defended himself and his store during an armed robbery said, “I took care of it and that was that.”
The reality is, anti-gun policies do very little to actually address crime because they ignore the fact that criminals, by definition, do not follow the law. And the U.S. Concealed Carry Association For Saving Lives (USCCA-FSL) is not going to sit quietly while law-abiding gun owners who use firearms each day to prevent crimes and protect their families are attacked and used as political pawns in the gun-control game.
That is why, the USCCA-FSL has launched its very first national ad campaign in a number of key congressional races across the country in order to put real faces behind gun ownership in America and the realities of what’s at stake in November. This campaign also reinforces what’s at stake beyond the candidate, and focuses on the issue at hand – gun ownership and why record numbers of Americans are choosing to be their family’s first line of defense.
The ad itself features Jennifer M., who is a mother of four and domestic violence survivor who said that she chose firearm ownership and training to “feel safe in my home and to protect myself and my children from him.” Jennifer’s message doesn’t just resonate widely with gun owners of all backgrounds but with everyday voters who are perhaps thinking of buying a gun amidst rising crime and anti-gun measures at the state and federal level, but haven’t taken that next step yet.
Ultimately, this ad campaign goes much deeper and farther beyond November; it’s about taking back the narrative of responsible gun ownership from the hands of politicians who only want what is best for their own political self-interests. The USCCA-FSL is here to help all gun owners make their voices heard, because defensive gun use saves lives every day. In fact, Americans use their firearms defensively between 500,000 and 3 million times each year!
As we move forward, we’ll continue advocating for what will make communities safer, like legislation such as the National Concealed Carry Reciprocity that will expand Americans’ natural-born right to self-defense.
It’s not just about this November, but the years to come, and we’ll keep fighting for the protection of our God-given rights.
Visit USCCA-FSL’s new website here to learn more about Jennifer’s story.
Stay updated with this issue and others by visiting our website and be sure to follow us on Twitter and Facebook so you stay an informed gun owner.
OTHER NEWS YOU MAY HAVE MISSED
Washington Examiner: Gun Rights Group Eyes Political Expansion With Initial 2022 Ad Buy
The largest gun rights organization most people have never heard of is expanding into electoral politics as part of a long-term strategy to boost the ranks of lawmakers in Congress who support the Second Amendment. Through an affiliated super PAC, the United States Concealed Carry Association is investing in the midterm elections on behalf of a handful of Republicans, beginning with Rep. Ted Budd (R-NC), the GOP Senate nominee in North Carolina. Television advertising for Budd and four Republican House candidates marks the first foray into campaigns for an organization with nearly 700,000 paid members nationwide that until now had generally shunned politics.
Fox News: Concealed Carry Insurance Business Booming As More Americans Pack Heat
Major concealed carry insurance providers in the U.S. say they have seen unprecedented growth in the past few years, as rising crime rates continue to drive more Americans to take their personal safety into their own hands by buying a firearm for self-defense. Delta Defense, which runs the U.S. Concealed Carry Association (USCCA) and provides self-defense liability insurance coverage as part of membership in the education and training organization, has seen its membership numbers more than double from 300,000 in 2020 to nearly 700,000 today. A decade ago, USCCA’s membership was at 50,000.
The Reload: Philly Judge Blocks New Gun Free Zones
A Pennsylvania judge has blocked Philadelphia’s latest attempt to institute its own gun restrictions. Judge Joshua H. Roberts of the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas issued a permanent injunction against Mayor Jim Kenney’s (D.) executive order banning guns from Philadelphia parks and rec facilities on Monday. The court permanently enjoined the city against enforcing the mayor’s directive. The ruling represents another setback for the city’s repeated attempts to enact stricter gun laws than the state has imposed. For years it has run headlong into the state’s preemption law, which says localities can not pass gun restrictions beyond what the state has adopted. It also represents another defeat for gun-control advocates who have attempted to pierce the veil of protection afforded by preemption laws across the country.
Washington Examiner: Supreme Court Vacates Massachusetts Gun Control Ruling In Another 2A Victory
In the months since the 6-3 conservative majority on the Supreme Court expanded gun possession rights and weakened states’ ability to limit the carrying of guns in public spaces, the high court has identified several cases in need of rehearing in light of the new precedent. This week, the Supreme Court ordered a lower court in Massachusetts to vacate its ruling on the state’s gun control law and reconsider the case Morin v. Lyver. At issue is a state law imposing a lifetime ban on purchasing handguns on anyone convicted of nonviolent misdemeanors involving the possession or use of guns.