Summary Of The Second Amendment By David E. Vandercoy

David E. Vandercoy’s 1994 article, “The History of the Second Amendment,” appeared originally as 28 Val. L. Rev. 1007-1039 in Valparaiso University Law Review. Long overlooked, the Second Amendment has become the entity of some study and much discussion. The United States is the first country of its kind because of strong minded men and women who fought against all odds David E. Vandercoy (1994) addresses the history of the Second Amendment and attempt to define its original intent; not suggesting it is controlling. He quotes George Washington about how in order to preserve the rest of liberty, depending on the situation and circumstance, individuals entering into society must give up a share of it. His purpose for writing this article is only

Both Federalists, those promoting a strong central government, and the Antifederalists, those believing that liberties including the right of self-rule would be protected best by preservation of local autonomy, agreed that arms and liberty were inextricably linked. Additional views on the relationship between freedom and arms were expressed when the Constitution was being submitted to the states for ratification. The Antifederalists believed that governmental tyranny was the primary evil against which the people had to defend in creating a new constitution; and, to prevent such tyranny, they argued for the addition of a Bill of Rights which included, among other rights, the right to keep and bear arms. The Federalists, those supporting the Constitution as drafted, did not dispute the premise that governmental tyranny was the primary evil that people had to guard against. In summary, both Federalists and Antifederalists believed that the main danger to the republic was tyrannical government and the ultimate check on tyrannical government was an armed population for the sake of liberty (Vandercoy