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Harvard Researcher: About Half of New Gun Owners are Women

Monday, September 20, 2021

Harvard Researcher: About Half of New Gun Owners are Women

In a blow to the tired stereotypes perpetuated by gun control supporters, a recent academic survey found broad diversity among recent first time gun buyers. The findings bolstered what many observers had anecdotally discovered, the last year-and-a-half’s pandemic and civil unrest-fueled record-breaking gun sales.

Provided with the preliminary survey results, the Wall Street Journal reported, 

the 2021 National Firearms Survey, designed by Deborah Azrael of the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and Matthew Miller of Northeastern University, show an estimated 3.5 million women became new gun owners from January 2019 through April of this year. About 4 million men became new gun owners over that period, they found.

Therefore, the study suggests that 46.6% of new gun owners since January 2019 were women.

The news is of particular interest to those who understand the Second Amendment isn’t about duck hunting. Pew Research Center data suggests that women are more likely than men to cite self-defense as their reason for purchasing a firearm. In 2017, Pew reported,

Male and female gun owners are about equally likely to cite protection as a reason why they own guns: About nine-in-ten in each group say this is a reason, and 65% and 71%, respectively, say it is a major reason. But far larger shares of women than men who own guns say protection is the only reason they own a gun: About a quarter of women who own guns (27%) are in this category, compared with just 8% of men.

The 2021 survey also found that new gun owners were more diverse than the general population. The Wall Street Journal noted, “Among new gun buyers, 55% were white, 21% were Black and 19% were Hispanic. Among new women gun owners, 28% were Black.” For context, Census data places the U.S. demographic breakdown at 13.4% Black and 18.5% Hispanic.

The survey findings won’t come as a surprise to those who have been paying attention. Starting in the earliest days of the pandemic, there were media reports throughout the country noting a diverse deluge of first-time gun buyers showing up at gun dealers. Moreover, surveys of these dealers showed a similar situation unfolding. In February, NSSF noted, “sales among women accounted for 40 percent of all sales, and purchases by African Americans increased by 56 percent compared to 2019.”

Azrael and Miller’s findings are even more notable given the anti-gun movement’s recent attempts to leverage the current identity politics mood in pursuit of their civilian disarmament agenda. The recent survey data is strong evidence that the public is ignoring these political opportunists, understanding that the Second Amendment right is for all Americans.

 

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New Mexico Supreme Court Upholds Governor’s “Public Health Emergency” Carry Ban in NRA Challenge

Saturday, March 8, 2025

New Mexico Supreme Court Upholds Governor’s “Public Health Emergency” Carry Ban in NRA Challenge

In 2023, New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham issued an executive order declaring gun violence a “public health emergency” and banning the carry of firearms in various locations throughout the state.

Supreme Court Skeptical About Mexico’s Attempt to Pass Buck to U.S. Gunmakers

News  

Monday, March 10, 2025

Supreme Court Skeptical About Mexico’s Attempt to Pass Buck to U.S. Gunmakers

Yesterday, the U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments in a case in which the Mexican government is attempting to hold members of the U.S. gun industry financially liable for drug cartel violence south of the border.

California: Bill to Restrict Self Defense Rights Introduced in Legislature

Friday, February 28, 2025

California: Bill to Restrict Self Defense Rights Introduced in Legislature

The California legislative session is currently underway and anti-gun lawmakers are once again wrongly focusing on law-abiding citizens instead of focusing on actual criminals.

Senators and Representatives Send Letter Urging Repeal of Biden-era Rule Damaging the Firearms Industry

News  

Friday, March 7, 2025

Senators and Representatives Send Letter Urging Repeal of Biden-era Rule Damaging the Firearms Industry

On March 5th U.S. Senator Mike Lee (R-UT) and U.S. Representative Mark Green (R-TN-07) sent a letter to Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick urging him to rescind an interim final rule (IFR) that the Biden Administration ...

NRA Statement on President Trump’s Executive Order Protecting Second Amendment Rights

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Second Amendment  

Friday, February 7, 2025

NRA Statement on President Trump’s Executive Order Protecting Second Amendment Rights

Today, the White House announced a new Executive Order to protect and expand the Second Amendment rights of all law-abiding Americans. This is the first action taken by President Donald J. Trump to carry through ...

Red Flag Laws: The Pop-Tart Gun to Prison Pipeline?

News  

Monday, March 10, 2025

Red Flag Laws: The Pop-Tart Gun to Prison Pipeline?

Several years ago, a seven-year-old boy was suspended from school for chewing his breakfast pastry into the shape of a gun and pretending to fire it at his second grade classmates. A school official stated the child ...

NRA Files Amicus Brief Urging SCOTUS to Hear Challenge to New York’s “Concealed Carry Improvement Act”

Wednesday, February 26, 2025

NRA Files Amicus Brief Urging SCOTUS to Hear Challenge to New York’s “Concealed Carry Improvement Act”

Today, the National Rifle Association filed an amicus brief urging the U.S. Supreme Court to hear a challenge to New York’s “Concealed Carry Improvement Act.”

New Mexico: Semi-Auto Ban Legislation Held Over in Committee Until Friday

Thursday, March 6, 2025

New Mexico: Semi-Auto Ban Legislation Held Over in Committee Until Friday

Yesterday the New Mexico Senate Judiciary Committee met to continue discussions on Senate Bill 279 (GoSAFE). The author did not accept the committee substitute to amend the near all-encompassing ban on semi-auto firearms with equally ...

Maine: Progressive Lawmaker Believes There Are No Deer in Northern Maine.

News  

Wednesday, March 5, 2025

Maine: Progressive Lawmaker Believes There Are No Deer in Northern Maine.

This week, extreme anti-hunting lawmakers testified to restrict coyote hunting in Maine.

New Mexico: Hearing Tomorrow on Legislation to Destroy the Firearms Industry

Friday, March 7, 2025

New Mexico: Hearing Tomorrow on Legislation to Destroy the Firearms Industry

Tomorrow March 8 at 9am, the Senate Tax, Business & Transportation committee will be hearing Senate Bill 318, legislation to massively expand penalties and legal liabilities for the firearm industry. 

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Established in 1975, the Institute for Legislative Action (ILA) is the "lobbying" arm of the National Rifle Association of America. ILA is responsible for preserving the right of all law-abiding individuals in the legislative, political, and legal arenas, to purchase, possess and use firearms for legitimate purposes as guaranteed by the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.