By Roxroy Ballers
If you think the recent spike in new gun ownership comes from old white guys out in the sticks, think again.
You may be surprised to find out that, per a recent study published in ACP’s “Annals of Internal Medicine,” 50 percent of all gun sales in 2019 were to women (47% in 2020). Additionally, the NSSF estimates that from 2019 to 2020, sales of firearms to African Americans increased 56 percent!
Although these demographics have traditionally been underrepresented in firearm sales, they are quickly catching up as they seek to defend themselves and join communities of like-minded people.
Community
One of those communities is the 40,000-member strong National African American Gun Association (NAAGA).
“We’re just black folks that like guns”, says the founder in a recent article in The Cut. NAAGA is not a political organization, rather it’s a brotherhood and sisterhood for all gun owners, whether they be newbies or long-time enthusiasts.
The sense of community that comes from shooting with and learning from “someone who looks like you” is an important part of the growth of NAAGA.
“I hate feeling like I don’t belong somewhere,” says Onnie Brown, an African American woman and Co-Vice President of NAAGA.
She says belonging to NAAGA helps these women navigate the ins and outs of the journey, whether it’s purchasing one’s first gun, receiving training, maintaining skills, or negotiating the added attention that sometimes comes with being a minority gun owner.
Self Protection
Growth of gun ownership for African Americans is also rooted in the basic need for self-protection.
The Cut article details several instances where Black gun owners realized that “Nobody protests us.”
Per the article:
In comparison with their white counterparts, Black women are three times as likely to be murdered; twice as likely to be killed by an acquaintance; and almost twice as likely to be fatally shot by an intimate partner. Neither Sierra-Arévalo nor Onnie Brown is too surprised by these stats. “Nobody protects us,” Brown says, likening these disparities and the overall lack of concern over them with the public’s seeming indifference toward missing Black girls. “When a Black woman is missing, no one will care,” she says. “But you get a white girl up there missing and they get all prime-time news, everything’s all over the internet.”
Police response times in certain neighborhoods can also be a problem for unarmed minorities.
One such individual who lives on the West Side of Chicago told The Cut it took law enforcement 30 minutes to respond to his call for help when a perp tried to force his way into the man’s home.
“Between shifts,” is the answer they gave the homeowner as to why it took so long for help to arrive, despite the fact that the station is across the street.
While he used to be “anti-gun and all of that,” he quickly changed his mind.
“If anybody should be pro–Second Amendment,” he said, “it should be the descendants of former slaves.”
By the Numbers
A black woman from Houston noted that much of the growth in the female and African American demographics come from “ladies that are realizing no one’s protecting them…so they gotta do it themselves”.
This assessment mirrors the aforementioned trends. To put things in perspective, the study breaks down the data in further detail:
An estimated 2.9% of U.S. adults (7.5 million) became new gun owners from 1 January 2019 to 26 April 2021…. Approximately half of all new gun owners were female (50% in 2019 and 47% in 2020 to 2021), 20% were Black (21% in 2019 and in 2020–2021), and 20% were Hispanic (20% in 2019 and 19% in 2020–2021).
Experiences often bring people into the gun ownership fold, but it is increasingly the sense of community that keeps them here. Let us embrace the fact that we are becoming more diverse and let us welcome our new friends with open arms.
Of course black women should have guns. All women should have guns. OK, does that mean everyone should walk around swinging heat to scare others? Of course not, but there is an old west saying. “God made all men, Sam Colt made them equal.” In the west, some of the famous gunslingers were slight of build and not able to win a fist-fight. Women and the aged, or heck, anyone, should have the resource that being armed offers, since those who would harm you consider that you are weak or unsuspecting, and they can phusically prevail. I’m not going to talk about who is responsible for black crime being so high, and most black crime is against other blacks, but who is it that was demonstrating against police, asking for defunding? A lot of black women. And now they realize that protection is good, and they need to be able to protect themselves, and have that ability. I am def for people having guns and being trained to use them, as we live in a world where tragedy can strike, and esp for women by themselves. Having a gun has turned the tables on many a potential crime. CDC estimates that 500,000 to 3 million crimes have been prevented by good people with guns, compared to 40, 000 deaths by gun each year, with more than half of those suicides. And you want to think guns are a problem? The do FAR more good than bad each year. And I welcome anyone to be trained and able to use a gun to defend themselves and others. And don’t worry, it won’t encourage the bad guys to get guns….. they already have them! Gun laws don’t even slow them down.
I am a very old retired federal law enforcement officer and the young ladies that I have trained both black and white like to call me “Uncle Ray” I only have one problem with all of them I have to keep telling them that center of mass is not bellow the belt buckle. If you are surprised in anyway that non-law-enforcement black ladies are learning to use firearms. Please remember that Frederick Douglas once opined ” a black man has only three boxes he can depend on for justice a ballot box, a jury box and a cartridge box! With that ladies and gentlemen I give you the National Rifle Association!
Welcome welcome welcome.
I’ll any decent peaceable human being into the tent of common sense and the constitution. Time to start focusing on the real enemy any who want to harm or enslave you. All people have this enemy to deal with.not just blacks.lets make America constitutional again and guard our freedoms so we can guard our loved ones and ourselves.
Raising one’s children with a real sense of right and wrong could make their world less dangerous.
Everyone should own firearms and, more importantly, train with them so they’ll be able to protect themselves.
Having said that, if I was a black woman, I’d be more afraid of the police or old white people with guns than anything else.
What a terrible thing to say, if you were black Roman you’d be more scared if cops and white guys!! That’s pretty racist right there dude and it’s also not true !
What a terrible thing to say, if you were black woman you’d be more scared of cops and white guys!! That’s pretty racist right there dude and it’s also not true !
Apparently you haven’t read the statistics. There are lots of good black people but lets just say the bad ones are really really bad. If anything gets media attention it’s killing of an innocent black person by police or white vigilantes. Thankfully the Brianna Taylors and Amaud Arberys are rare. But many blacks are in danger every day of their life from black criminal elements in Chicago & other cities. These women are right. They’ve finally realized what we knew all along: “When you’ve got seconds to live the police are only minutes away” (or in the instance above more like half hour–something that’s not likely to get better these days what with precious few applicants wanting to replace cops who are retiring or just plain fed up and quitting).
That shows EXACTLY how ignorant of the facts and reality you truly are. Black on black crime should be their biggest fear because it IS their biggest threat. For every instance of “police or old white (person)” crime perpetrated on a black female there are countless instances of black on black crimes perpetrated. You are exactly why the term “libTARD” came about and I have no doubt you are an official, card carrying member. Stop watching CNN, do some factual research and educate yourself jackass.
Delusional paranoia , anyone ?
What is this everlasting preoccupation with “someone who looks like me”??? I’ve been a firearms instructor and coach for more than two decades and I’ve had students of all backgrounds, races, and ethnicities. I have also had many classes, seminars, and workshops over the years to make myself the best instructor and coach I can be. My teachers have been (also) of all backgrounds, races, and ethnicities. Some of them (regrettably, not all) have been phenomenally good. But whether they were good or bad had nothing to do with what they looked like. I learned something from each of them, and I didn’t give a damn whether they “looked like me” or not. I was looking for quality and wisdom to learn from them, not what color their skin was or what plumbing the Good Lord installed in their bodies.
And this “looks like me” extends far beyond firearms instruction. It invades all aspects of current life. Can we all — PLEASE — just ignore what the other guy looks like and listen and watch what he (or she) says or does? If they make sense, great; if not, you can ignore them. But what color or gender they are or where they came from is irrelevant. Get over it!
I’m also a firearms instructor and amen to every word and sentiment contained in your comment !!!
I am supportive of ANY lady’s use , maintaining or deployment of a firearm .
To me , it assures the lady will not be “ messed “ , unless she wants to be “ messed “ .
How’s that for equality ?
I say, God Bless them! I spent 35 years in police work and one of the more heartbreaking things we ran into day after day is how crappy black women are treated in their own community. It’s about time they figure out that they ought to have one of those things that keeps getting used on THEM! (A gun, for any leftist readers out there.)
We’re all freedom loving Americans united by steel, wood, and polymer. But those initials could lead to misunderstandings.
Glad to see whole segments of our society realize the government cannot always take care of them. I had to chuckle a few years back when a couple of bullies that give straight white men a bad name were bullying 2 gay men. they quickly backed away when the gay guys turned around, opened their jackets to reveal their own firearms.
I guess I’m going to have to wait till they open up the ” Hong Key American Gun Association ” … HKAGA !
Because I know for SURE ” Nobody is going to protect ME !!! “
National African American Gun Association (NAAGA)…
REALLY ???
Exactly, if someone is born in the U.S or became a citizen of the U.S; they’re an American. Stop with this English-American, or Mexican-American, etc, you’re an American.
I do believe it was an intended ironic play on words….and it was successful.