What do you think?
Rate this book
NRA: An American Legend
The history of the National Rifle Association explores the right of Americans to keep and bear arms from its inception in New York city in 1871 to the present.
304 pages, Hardcover
First published September 6, 2002
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 1 of 1 review
May 30, 2011
Being a liberal Democrat, I joined the NRA with deep reluctance over 10 years ago, fearing that I would be surrounded by right wing zealots and KKK members. Instead, I found that I had lucked into membership in one of the country's finest organizations. This book provides fodder for anyone curious about those reasons.
The NRA was formed after the Civil War by those who understood that our heritage as a nation of rifle experts had declined substantially. Personal weapons are a soldier's life insurance and the NRA has done much in the World Wars and after to ensure that our soldiers have the best chance possible to stay alive through combat and come home safely.
Shooting is stereotypically a male sport, yet it is also one in which women can compete with men with complete equality. In fact, this book revealed that women have been competing with men successfully at shooting sports since 1906! Since I collect old NRA magazines, I have always been struck by the equality with which male and female competitors have been presented in issues I have seen back into the 1930s and 40s.
I happen to also know that the NRA accepted an NAACP chapter as an affiliate in the FIFTIES, when chapter members were threatened by a police force riddled with KKK members. This vision of equality is shared by the unfairly maligned Charlton Heston, who was an active civil rights fighter.
The NRA and its educational programs are largely responsible for the steep drop in fatal gun accidents between 1970 and 1990, a FIFTY percent drop from 2400/year to 1200/year.
The NRA has been forced by gun hating politicians and lobbyists to become a no-compromise lobby for our rights. It is only sensible that they fight for our rights with the same tenacity that the ACLU and Planned Parenthood do. Really the ACLU has sold us out by ignoring gun rights and I feel that the NRA is identical in value, scope and success to Planned Parenthood. Both support freedom with responsibility and both have my praise for this.
The NRA was formed after the Civil War by those who understood that our heritage as a nation of rifle experts had declined substantially. Personal weapons are a soldier's life insurance and the NRA has done much in the World Wars and after to ensure that our soldiers have the best chance possible to stay alive through combat and come home safely.
Shooting is stereotypically a male sport, yet it is also one in which women can compete with men with complete equality. In fact, this book revealed that women have been competing with men successfully at shooting sports since 1906! Since I collect old NRA magazines, I have always been struck by the equality with which male and female competitors have been presented in issues I have seen back into the 1930s and 40s.
I happen to also know that the NRA accepted an NAACP chapter as an affiliate in the FIFTIES, when chapter members were threatened by a police force riddled with KKK members. This vision of equality is shared by the unfairly maligned Charlton Heston, who was an active civil rights fighter.
The NRA and its educational programs are largely responsible for the steep drop in fatal gun accidents between 1970 and 1990, a FIFTY percent drop from 2400/year to 1200/year.
The NRA has been forced by gun hating politicians and lobbyists to become a no-compromise lobby for our rights. It is only sensible that they fight for our rights with the same tenacity that the ACLU and Planned Parenthood do. Really the ACLU has sold us out by ignoring gun rights and I feel that the NRA is identical in value, scope and success to Planned Parenthood. Both support freedom with responsibility and both have my praise for this.
Displaying 1 - 1 of 1 review