NRA & Gun Control
Timeline
1939
United States v. Miller
In 1939 the U.S. Supreme Court heard the case United States v. Miller, ruling that through the National Firearms Act of 1934, Congress could regulate the interstate selling of a short barrel shotgun. The court stated that there was no evidence that a sawed off shotgun “has some reasonable relationship..Read More
1938
Federal Firearms Act (FFA) of 1938
The Federal Firearms Act (FFA) of 1938 required gun manufacturers, importers, and dealers to obtain a federal firearms license. It also defined a group of people, including convicted felons, who could not purchase guns, and mandated that gun sellers keep customer records. The FFA was repealed in 1968 by the..Read More
1934
National Firearms Act of 1934
The NRA endorsed the first major federal gun-control law, the National Firearms Act of 1934. At congressional hearings, Karl Frederick, former NRA president, was asked if the Second Amendment was a bar to the law. His answer was, from today’s vantage point, remarkable: “I have not given it any study..Read More
Legislative Affairs Division created
In response to repeated attacks on the Second Amendment rights, NRA formed the Legislative Affairs Division in 1934. While NRA did not lobby directly at this time, it did mail out legislative facts and analyses to members, whereby they could take action on their own. In 1975, recognizing the critical..Read More
1877
Compromise of 1877 – Jim Crow laws
The Compromise of 1877 was an unwritten deal, informally arranged among U.S. Congressmen, that settled the intensely disputed 1876 presidential election. It resulted in the United States federal government pulling the last troops out of the South, and ending the Reconstruction Era. Through the Compromise, Republican Rutherford B. Hayes was..Read More
1876
United States v. Cruikshank
The Second Amendment attracted serious judicial attention with the Reconstruction era case of United States v. Cruikshank which ruled that the Privileges or Immunities Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment did not cause the Bill of Rights, including the Second Amendment, to limit the powers of the State governments, stating that..Read More
1871
National Rifle Association of America founded
The “National Rifle Association” was granted a charter by the state of New York, “to promote rifle practice, and for this purpose to provide a suitable range or ranges in the vicinity of New York”
1868
Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution
The Fourteenth Amendment (Amendment XIV) to the United States Constitution was adopted on July 9, 1868, as one of the Reconstruction Amendments. Arguably one of the most consequential amendments, it addresses citizenship rights and equal protection under the law and was proposed in response to issues related to former slaves..Read More
1866
2nd Freedmen’s Bureau Bill
The Freedmen’s Bureau bill that passed in 1866 provided many additional rights to ex-slaves, including the distribution of land, schools for their children, and military courts to ensure these rights. The Freedmen’s Bureau Act gave ex-slaves “any of the civil rights or immunities belonging to white persons, including the right..Read More
Civil Rights Act of 1866
The first United States federal law to define citizenship and affirm that all citizens are equally protected by the law. It was mainly intended, in the wake of the American Civil War, to protect the civil rights of persons of African descent born in or brought to the United States...Read More