One of the common misconceptions about gun owners is that we’re all old, white men. It’s an image that is frequently perpetuated, especially when the anti-gun Left attacks Americans for wanting to protect their right to keep and bear arms.
For years, Second Amendment advocates have been outspoken about the diversifying demographic, with women leading the change. In fact, data from the National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF), the firearms industry trade association, indicates new gun ownership soared to an all-time high last year. The NSSF estimates that 8.4 million Americans became new gun owners in 2020, which accounted for roughly 40% of all background checks last year.
“The expectation of who is today’s gun owner was shattered in 2020. That was a trend the industry saw coming for many years before, but the events of last year showed that gradual drift of gun ownership away from ‘old, male, and pale’ into overdrive,” NSSF’s Director of Public Affairs, Mark Oliva, told The Daily Wire. “Todays’ gun owner is younger, more urban, and includes more women. We’ve seen tremendous growth in gun ownership among African Americans, Hispanic America, and Asian Americans. Today’s gun owner looks more and more like the rest of America and that’s making it difficult for gun control groups to try and compartmentalize gun owners into a box that they can vilify. The truth is that today’s gun owner looks just like you and me and they are our next-door neighbors.”
While this trend is not new to those of us who are gun owners, it’s suddenly apparent to the gun control groups and the media. In fact, CNN published an article about the “firearms industry and its GOP allies” taking a “more inclusive approach” to fighting gun control legislation. The article’s entire premise is that Second Amendment supporters need new organizations to step in to fight anti-gun legislation that the National Rifle Association (NRA) — which is currently undergoing a bankruptcy fight — is traditionally seen spearheading.
“In its place, gun rights supporters have found additional political allies among minority-led, pro-Second Amendment groups such as the National African American Gun Association and the DC Project, a women-centered firearms education organization that also trains domestic violence victims to safely and legally defend themselves,” the article stated. “Republicans have invited leaders from these groups to speak on Capitol Hill to counteremotional testimony from the families of gun violence victims invited by Democrats.”
