IL RNHA Releases Statement Supporting Passage of Family & Personal Protection Act - Concealed Carry

Illinois is one of only 2 states that do not allow its citizens to carry a concealed handgun for their own personal protection. That's correct. 48 states have approved of your right to carry a concealed handgun in one way or another.

Today, the Illinois General Assembly is working to find the votes to pass House Bill 0148, the Family and Personal Protection Act. Passing this bill will make Illinois the 49th state to recognize your rights to protect yourself by carrying a concealed handgun, responsibly. And the Republican National Hispanic Assembly of Illinois supports your rights and calls on Springfield to pass the bill.

Why? The 2nd Amendment provides us with the right "to keep and bear arms," to protect ourselves. What does that mean? It means that people who aren't able to protect themselves with firearms probably shouldn't be allowed to have them. But most Americans are healthy, capable people, and the only obstacles to concealed carry of a handgun should be whatever is necessary to establish a person's health, competence, and cost of distributing the permit.

Now, first, some people might think that putting more guns on the street is more dangerous. For the record, those states that legalized concealed carry saw decreases in violent crime rates immediately after passage. Second, if people have guns and get into an argument, won't that more often than not escalate into a shootout? There has been no evidence that concealed carry permits have led to an escalation of gun related violence with respect to domestic or alcohol fueled disputes.

Another point of view is that any limitation of a gun owner's rights is "too much." Once limits are introduced, doesn't that allow the government to strip away our rights? The answer is - no. Speed limits and seat belt laws haven't outlawed driving, and that's not even a right, it's a privilege. Punishing people that yell "Fire!" in a crowded theater just to start a riot doesn't inhibit the right to free political discussion and debate. Some limits are just common sense, "plain as the nose on your face," ok. It's the ones that aren't that we have every right to question.

What makes this law possible? Two Supreme Court decisions in the past few years have specifically defined the 2nd Amendment. The first was The District of Columbia v. Heller. In Heller the Court said that Americans have a right to keep guns in their homes that the federal government can't interfere with.

The second decision was McDonald v. Chicago. In McDonald, the Court found that the 2nd Amendment right "to keep and bear arms" applies to the states through the 14th Amendment. So local governments can't keep people from owning or carrying guns, they can only "limit" the ownership or carrying of guns.

Why carry guns? The RNHA of Illinois doesn't endorse arming every person on the street. We do endorse the rights of each person in the state of Illinois to carry a gun to protect themselves, their family, and their personal property, responsibly. We believe that when the most fundamental rights of faith and humankind are respected that families, jobs, and schools can't help but prosper in the wake. The right to self-defense and personal protection is one of those fundamental rights and we are proud to support HB0148 - The Family and Personal Protection Act - making tomorrow safer today.

***Statement written by John Guevara, Vice-President RNHA IL