How Covid-19 Made America More Pro-gun

by Richard Douglas, ©2021 

(Apr. 28, 2021) — At this point, approaching two years later, everybody is downright sick of the Covid-19 pandemic. Not many have been getting out unscathed whether that’s from losing a job, housing, food, medicine, or even catching the virus itself. Everybody is exhausted from extended full lockdowns and mask mandates. People are looking for a light at the end of the tunnel to get things back to normal, but many are still in doubt. Despite coronavirus being a worldwide pandemic, the United States specifically has entered another turbulent time in its history. 2020 has been filled with tension and anxiety from civil unrest, increasingly restrictive laws, more government oversight, and a brand new administration to top it all off. Riots about police brutality and people storming the Capitol were some of the biggest lowlights of this era of United States history. It’s basically the perfect recipe for societal collapse. How has the average person responded to that? Prepping. People are now more ready than ever to leave everything behind and survive on their own.

Many have been buying out supplies like masks, and infamously toilet paper. Aside from the typical survival items are guns which spiked in popularity when Covid-19 was first confirmed in the United States. Prices have skyrocketed not only due to the increased volume of sales but also because of manufacturing issues due to Covid-19. Everybody wants a gun and most can’t get their hands on one. Ammo prices have spiked with common cartridges like 5.56 blowing up to over a dollar per round. That’s over $30 per magazine for your standard AR-15.  Even with the price spikes, citizens are still looking to buy, but there’s another problem. There’s just not enough to go around right now. Complete builds and parts alike are going out of stock only minutes after they’re put up for sale. Even red dot sights can’t escape. Where is this all going? Who’s buying this stuff?

The average person might be inclined to believe that right-wingers and republicans are the ones purchasing like crazy, but that’s not it. They’re certainly buying what they can and stocking up, but they’re not the only ones. New groups are looking to be armed.

One of the most notable groups is former anti-gun advocates who are now able to see that firearms are not just for defending yourself from burglars. They can see that law enforcement isn’t always on our side and there may come a time where they might need to defend themselves from a tyrannical government or things like red flag raids. Conservatives may disagree with their initial reasoning about law enforcement but have had a positive reception to new gun owners and 2nd amendment advocates despite their political alignment.

Another important group arming themselves is the black community. For years 2A advocates have continued chanting that armed minorities are harder to oppress and it looks like we’re heading in that direction. Black gun ownership has risen exponentially. In fact, they make up the absolute largest group of new gun owners in America. The rate of ownership rose more than 52.8% in 2020. This likely stems from the highly covered stories of police brutality and protecting themselves from rioters.

For gun owners and 2A activists, 2020 was an absolute victory since they’re always happy to see more people flexing their constitutional rights. Many saw firsthand how necessary guns are to keeping government powers and rogue factions in check. There are differences in political ideology everywhere, but many citizens can agree on one thing: The right to bear arms is necessary to the security of a free state and shall not be infringed.

Author Bio:

Richard Douglas writes on firearms, defense and security issues. He is the founder and editor of Scopes Field, and a columnist at The National Interest, 1945, Daily Caller and other publications.