Black Gun Owners In New York Seize On Supreme Court Ruling Making It Easier To Carry In Public
Some Black gun owners are reportedly eager to flex their ability to carry after a June Supreme Court ruling that makes it easier to possess handguns in public, touting it as an important vindication of their rights to self-defense.
SCOTUS, in a 6-3 decision, struck down a New York state law on concealed carry that restricted the carrying of handguns in public by most people. According to Bloomberg, the groups say the ability to carry in public is an opportunity to reshape the debate in the Black community over gun ownership six years after the killing of Philando Castile in Minnesota.
The SCOTUS decision, which comes amid a wave of mass shootings, has sparked concern over public safety and raises questions over whether Black gun owners, like Castile, would enjoy the same privileges and others. Castile, who had a permit for his firearm, was still shot and killed by police during a 2016 traffic stop.
Philip Smith, founder and national president of the National African American Gun Association, said the court ruling solidifies the rights of gun owners like Castile.
“When he was shot by that officer, after watching that video, I told our members, make sure you can still carry in your state. The one thing we cannot do is to act cowardly and to shudder in the corner like we don’t deserve to have a gun,” he notes, according to Bloomberg. “We’re going to stand tall and exercise our Second Amendment rights.”
In their amicus brief to SCOTUS opposing the New York law, NAAGA, pointed to the history of laws denying gun rights for Black Americans. “Such laws often included arbitrary prohibitions on the carrying of firearms with parallels to New York’s current law. Such laws invariably discriminate against the poor and minorities,” the brief said.
Black Guns Matter, another group, also asked the justices to strike down the New York law, stating, “Armed self-defense has always been vitally important to the African American community,”
That said, John B. King, a former Obama Education secretary now running for Maryland governor, said Black gun owners won’t be treated the same as other groups and lead to more deadly encounters with law enforcement.
“I think we’re sadly going to see more incidents like that, with police fearing that anyone they encounter will have a gun,” said King.
After the new ruling, representatives of these Black gun groups said they’re pushing efforts to promote legal gun ownership and education in the Black community.
“For the last five years, we’ve given classes on how to legally purchase, store, transport, own and train with firearms,” said Black Guns Matter founder Maj Toure. “We’ve traveled around the country, going to these areas that have the most violent crime—Chicago, St. Louis, New Orleans, Philly, New York, Compton, L.A.—every year we give these classes all the year for free.”
