Second
Amendment
Second
Amendment
| "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." |
Key Words: |
| Militia: In Colonial times, the Militia consisted of local units made up of every male citizen of military age capable of bearing arms to defend his home, family and community. Special units not composed of all citizens, like the modern National Guard, were referred to as a "select corps" or a "select militia." An early draft of the Second Amendment defined the Militia as being "composed of the body of the People, trained to Arms." Today, whether they are aware of it or not, all citizens capable of bearing arms that do not belong to the regular armed forces or the National Guard are members of the Militia. |
The People: "...'the people' seems to have been a term of art employed in select parts of the Constitution. The Preamble declares that the Constitution is ordained and established by the People of the United States.' The Second Amendment protects the right of the people to keep and bear arms,' and the Ninth and Tenth Amendments provide that certain rights and powers are retained by and reserved to the people.' See also U.S.Constitution Amendment I ("Congress shall make no law ... abridging ... the right of the people peaceably to assemble") .... While this textual exegesis is by no means conclusive, it suggests that the people' protected by the Fourth Amendment, and by the First and Second Amendments, refers to a class of persons who are part of a national community...." United States v. Verdugo-Urquidez, 494 U.S. 259, 265 (1990). |