2nd Amendment (Right to Bear Arms) Research Paper

2nd Amendment (Right to Bear Arms) - Research Paper Example The Court ruling also says that an individual can use firearms for ‘traditionally lawful purposes, such as self-defense within the home’ (FindLaw, n.d.). The Amendment II as passed by the Congress states that â€Å"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† (cited in Young, 2007, p.222). The Second Amendment came into effect in the second half of the 20th century. As described in a web document (‘Constitutional Topic: The Second Amendment’, n.d.), gun control advocates perceived the Amendment in another way referring to the mounting level of violence in the society and the role played by firearms in those issues; and in contrast to this view, firearm enthusiasts claimed that the opponents’ arguments are against people’s freedom and hence they interpreted the 2nd Amendment just as fiercely. Evidently, some phrases in the Second Amendment paved the way for a series of debates. The English Bill of Rights 1689 has greatly influenced the 2nd Amendment to the US Constitution. The right to have arms has been considered as one of the fundamental natural right throughout the English history. In District Columbia v. Heller (2008), the Supreme Court makes reference to the English rights concerning the possession of arms by individuals. The growing threat of terrorism in Western countries, particularly in the United States, justifies the Second Amendment. Since US is considered to be prone to terror attacks since the 9/11, this Amendment would raise the level of security of US people. Referring to the increasing rates of crimes in the country including robbery, kidnapping, and sexual assaults, this Amendment would help people to be more self-defensive. However, some law professionals do not support Amendment II arguing that this would worsen the gun crimes in the country. As stated in some documents (‘The Second Amendment to the United