The Extreme Left and Firearms – An Unstoppable Object vs. the Immovable Force?

Guest author: ​ Josh Montgomery

Recently, more and more leftist groups are taking up arms, under the argument that if others have rifles, we’ll have rifles too. On top of that, there are some claiming that guns are definitely not just for right-wingers!

It is known that, throughout recent history, right-wingers have held a monopoly on gun culture – a monopoly that leftist groups claim to be unearned and classify it as having lasted for too long.
Moreover, both in the halls of power and on social media, a certain image has been created. Specifically, the image of Republicans and libertarians having exclusivity over armed self-defense and guns.

Naturally, this makes the left look like they want to take guns away from all of the other people and, eventually, clean the country of guns. But it is not like that. Leftists are on their way to armed self-defense, so to say, and it seems that the unstoppable object has now joined the immovable force instead of fighting against it!

Not All Leftists Are Anti-Gun

At the moment, leftists seem to want two things only – namely, to arm themselves and then to challenge the very arguments that make it seem like they all hate guns. 

We all know very well that the radical left does have a history of armed community self-defense that is usually forgotten by the media and exchanged for the more favorable narrative that states: all liberals hate guns. 

However, as history suggests, it seems that the right’s greatest fear is not that of losing their guns but that of leftists having them. What most of these people fail to understand – from both right and left – is that the majority of the population had an amazing experience with guns throughout history.
When the right says that all leftists hate guns, they fail to take into account those that have literally grown up with guns and have a good gun education.

Inspiring Examples

When we think of the extreme left and firearms as of an unstoppable object that has to face an immovable force, then we fail to consider some of the aspects that put the object and the force within one another.

We refer to the Redneck Revolt, a far-left group that is present where it matters – and, naturally, they come armed, even open-carrying.

In 2017, the Unite the Right rally took place in Charlottesville, Virginia. Given the magnitude of the rally, it was bound that fascists and neo-Nazis would join it, attempting to disturb it – and perhaps even more.

However, the area cleared of perpetrators pretty fast after the Redneck Revolt made their appearance, open-carrying. Known as an anti-fascist, working-class, anti-racist armed community defense group, they were able to offer the people marching in the rally protection – something the police were not able to offer, as some leftists suggest. 

Obviously, this is not a singular case of unstoppable object joining forces with the immovable force. The extreme left doesn’t fear nor hate firearms – they use them to protect important things!

The Reason for Leftist Gun Ownership

Obviously, gun access should not be given freely. People that can’t be trusted with that kind of responsibility shouldn’t be able to see a gun, ever – more than 100 mass shootings that took place in the US stand proof for this argument.

On top of that, not everyone needs a firearm to protect themselves. Most people living in leftist communities, if we may call them that way, don’t need guns mainly because there are community patrols in place to protect them.

This is what leftist gun ownership is all about – namely, the protection of marginalized communities. Most leftists don’t think that everyone should get a gun. Instead, patrols of highly-trusted and well-trained individuals would get access to guns and would be held accountable by their community.
We do have to mention the fact that the gun control laws that are currently in place are not favorable for the communities of color and those with lower incomes. It seems like marginalized communities were never meant to own guns. 

Police Protection

The extreme left wants to pick up firearms mainly because, according to most of them, they can’t depend on the authorities to protect them. On top of that, it goes without saying that marginalized communities know better how to keep themselves safe.

Moreover, we all know that most fascist and racist attacks cannot be easily repelled or prevented by law enforcement. 

The way the right and left approach the subject of firearms varies a lot. The right wants to see what a gun can do in the hands of the leftists, while leftists see it as another tool that can help them overcome the struggles they have to face for collective liberation. 

The extreme left believes that they shouldn’t fight the military, police, and state with their bare hands – at least until they no longer exist as part of a state or world. 

The Right to Carry – Regardless of Side

It is said that more guns mean less crime. However, studies have shown that this doesn’t apply to the real world – only in theory. On the other hand, the right to carry gave people opportunities on how to handle the more guns aspect of America.

Most people, not only the extreme left, believe that since firearms are already almost everywhere, it would be important for the targeted minority groups to own guns. In short, if the side that wants to hurt minorities and marginalized communities has guns, then so should the latter side.

Moreover, there are a lot of people that base one’s decision to carry on previous experiences of gun violence – or any other forms of violence.

The Bottom Line

Overall, opinions vary widely. There are leftists claiming that they do not hate guns and would rely on them to protect themselves, leftists that call forth a diversity of viewpoints, and leftists that see armed self-defense as a potential danger to both the individual and the community. 

As expected, for the latter a reference on the assault on the Black Panthers in used, with a historical context as well. However, this very example shows that the extreme left has a gun history they can learn from and adapt to their current needs.
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In short, the extreme leftists can seemingly both approach and deny firearms – it is up to them what they do with the immovable force. They either use it for their collective liberation or try to remove it from within the country.

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Copyright 2019 Josh Montgomery - All Rights Reserved. Printed with written permission.