Sen. Tom Barrett attended a Second Amendment March in Lansing in September. | Pixabay
Sen. Tom Barrett attended a Second Amendment March in Lansing in September. | Pixabay
A Michigan senator who still serves in the Michigan Army National Guard told a crowd gathered for the Second Amendment March on Sept. 17 at the Michigan Capitol in Lansing that people’s gun rights “come from God.”
Sen. Tom Barrett (R-Charlotte) addressed people gathered to advocate for the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, included in the Bill of Rights, which guarantees “the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed.”
Founded in 2009 to organize a nationwide pro-Second Amendment rally that took place in 2010 in Washington, D.C., the Second Amendment March now focuses on Michigan events.
Sen. Tom Barrett
| #MiSenateGOP
“The purpose of the event is to show support for the 2nd Amendment and allow citizens to meet with their legislators to discuss gun rights issues,” according to the Second Amendment March website.
Barrett said that he saw people at the rally "coming together to respect and protect the rights that we take as sacred,” according to MiSenateGOP. “Our rights do not come from the governor of the state of Michigan. Our rights don’t even come from the Legislature. Our rights come from God, and our rights are there whether our governor or our federal Congress agrees with them or not. They are our rights for a reason — they are nonnegotiable.”
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has supported implementation of what’s known as a “red flag law," which allows law enforcement to take firearms from at-risk people, according to NPR's Michigan Radio.
Whitmer proclaimed June 5 as Gun Violence Awareness Day, “recognizing that the Second Amendment rights guaranteed by the Constitution of law-abiding citizens goes hand-in-hand with keeping firearms out of the hands of those who would seek to harm others or themselves,” according to Michigan.gov.
The Second Amendment March on Sept. 17 coincided with Constitution Day, the 233rd anniversary of the signing of the United States Constitution in Philadelphia on Sept. 17, 1787. The Second Amendment was ratified and added to the Constitution in 1791, according to MiSenateGOP.
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