Stand With Connecticut

The situation in Connecticut has yet to be resolved as citizens there are still potentially facing confiscation of lawfully obtained firearms and magazines. Though most of us don’t live in CT, there is a sense of solidarity, of wanting to help, and today I’m going to tell you how you can get involved no matter where you live.

Connecticut Citizens Defense League

First off, you can join and support the Connecticut Citizens Defense League (CCDL). The CCDL is a “non-partisan, grassroots organization devoted to advocating rights affirmed by the Constitutions of the United States of America and the State of Connecticut.” And you don’t have to be a CT resident to join their growing ranks of over 12,000 members. According to the CCDL Mission Statement:

We welcome anyone who believes that the defense of our constitutional rights is critical to the longevity of our freedom and to the success of this nation, and in particular that the rights to self defense and to keep and bear the arms to actualize that defense, are fundamental and undeniable.

So where does the money go? In a word: lawyers.

CCDL would like to thank everyone for all the support we are receiving from around the country. We are currently involved in a federal lawsuit against our state’s unconstitutional new gun laws. If you can spare it, please consider a donation to our Litigation Fund. 100% goes directly to fund our lawsuit. We’re hoping to take this all the way to the Supreme Court, so a win for us would be a win for gun owners everywhere.

http://ccdl.us/blog/2013/05/24/litigation-fund/

ALL donations are currently going to fund our lawsuit (expected to cost in excess of $1 million) against CT’s unconstitutional gun laws, merchandise sales are generally the only income we have to run a 12,000+ member organization and still keep it free to join.

CCDL gear is available at our monthly meetings, or may be ordered online at http://www.ccdl.us/shop

Additionally, if live in or near the CT state capitol, you can also attend the CCDL 2A Rally on April 5 at the Capitol Building, 210 Capitol Avenue, Hartford, Connecticut 06106. More information can be found here.

CCDL picnic, via CCDL

Connecticut Citizens Defense League on Facebook

Click here to join the Connecticut Citizens Defense League

NRA

The second way you can help no matter where you live is to join the NRA. The NRA, which needs no introduction, has been heavily involved in the CT fight since the beginning.

Throughout the Connecticut lawmakers’ efforts to attack law-abiding gun owners, your NRA has been actively involved in fighting to vindicate the Second Amendment rights of Connecticut’s citizens.  Shortly before the bill was rammed through the state legislature with no opportunity for public debate or even for adequate committee review, the NRA helped organize a huge lobby day protest rally in conjunction with the National Shooting Sports Foundation, the Connecticut Citizens Defense League and the Coalition of Connecticut Sportsmen.  Thousands turned out peacefully to protest the proposed legislation and the incursions on their rights that would undoubtedly result from it.

NRA is currently backing a lawsuit, Shew v. Malloy, to challenge the constitutionality of several provisions of the law, including its expanded bans on semi-automatic firearms and its restrictions on magazine capacity.  Some have wondered why NRA has not appeared as a named plaintiff in the suit.  Simply put, experience has often shown that NRA is more effective in lending its expertise and resources, rather than its name, to litigation.

If you haven’t done so already, please consider joining and supporting the NRA. I don’t agree with everything the NRA says and does, but they are actively fighting on our behalf and are worthy of our support.

Click here to join the National Rifle Association

Wrapping Up

I’m a member of both the CCDL and the NRA, and I would encourage you to do the same. Through these organizations and others like them, we can together make our voices heard and affect change through the political process while that avenue remains available to us.

I would like to thank Monderno reader Vincent P. for bringing the Connecticut Citizens Defense League to my attention.