Dominic Erdozain’s One Nation Under Guns argues that America’s gun culture misrepresents the Second Amendment. He writes that the Founding Fathers did not intend to guarantee an individual right to bear arms. He states that the modern distortion of this history, along with a combination of nationalism and racism, poses a threat to democracy. The book traces the evolution of attitudes toward firearms and explains the myths about gun ownership and the Second Amendment. These ideas have shaped the nation’s approach to gun control and contributed to its high rates of gun violence. Erdozain calls for a reevaluation of history to understand the true intent behind the Second Amendment and to create a more responsible approach to gun policy.

Our group talked about how in the past, white supremacy played a crucial role in promoting guns, by using them to enforce slavery. Black people were not allowed to own guns. Later on, Barry Goldwater and President Reagan promoted the Western "cowboy" myth. In 1968, the Gun Control Act was signed into law by President Johnson. The Supreme Court has weighed in a few times on the right to own and carry guns. U.S. cities are currently ten to twenty times more dangerous than cities in Europe. Only one percent of the U.S. population are members of the NRA.

The group felt that we need common sense gun laws. Only regulated militias should have guns. We need to find a different way of speaking about guns and regulations. We can undo the Second Amendment. We don’t sell cigarettes to children anymore, so it is possible to not sell guns for use by children. Parents are being held responsible for the actions of their children with guns.

For more information, see Historian Dominic Erdozain discusses new book, U.S. gun culture, Second Amendment at book event - The Brown Daily Herald.

The Morning Book Club's next book is Believing: Our Thirty-Year Journey to End Gender Violence by Anita Hill. We will meet on June 11th, at 10:00 am at the Highland Park Library, 1974 Ford Parkway.