SPECIAL ALERT - PLEASE READ
A MESSAGE TO ISRA MEMBERS FROM ISRA PRESIDENT DON MORAN
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Fellow Members:
As most of you know by
now, a "concealed carry" bill passed both chambers of the Illinois
General Assembly yesterday, the last day of the legislature's regular
session. By doing so, Illinois has partially met its obligations as
ordered by the federal appeals court. The next set of milestones
includes getting the governor to sign the legislation and for the state
police and other government agencies to implement the provisions of the
new concealed carry law.
The bottom line up front
is that anyone who feels that the war has now been won is sorely
mistaken. The government of Illinois is not any less anti-gun today than
it was at this time last year. Passage of this concealed carry bill has
not transformed Illinois into Texas by any stretch of the imagination.
While the concealed carry bill has left gun owners feeling lukewarm, the
gun control movement is boiling mad. You can expect the gun controllers
and their friends in the legislature's anti-gun caucus to come back at
us with a vengeance. You better believe that the gun-grabbers will make
sure that the road to concealed carry implementation a rocky one. You
better believe that the gun controllers will redouble their efforts to
make private firearm ownership too expensive and too impractical for the
average citizen.
As I write this letter
to you, the ISRA's team of attorneys and legislative analysts are
pouring over the concealed carry bill to evaluate both the obvious and
the more subtle ramifications contained in the bill's language. I will
not speak to the details of the bill until that analysis is complete.
However, it is important that you understand that the bill affects all
gun owners - whether they decide to apply for concealed carry or not.
There is no illusion that this legislative solution to the court order
was arrived at in an atmosphere of trust. Therefore, at this juncture,
we are not entirely sure whether the concealed carry bill is an honest
effort to enhance your security, or a gun control Trojan Horse that
endangers your right to keep and bear arms. When we have a better
understanding of the bill and its implications, I will issue further
communication with you.
I'm sure you can
appreciate that it's been a long road from where we were a decade ago to
where we are today. Once a decision in the Heller case was reached, we
all knew it was just a matter of time before an opportunity would arise
to bring the concealed carry issue to a head in Illinois. The McDonald
and Shepard cases laid the groundwork for the final push to compel
Illinois to allow average citizens to carry defensive firearms for the
protection of themselves and their families. Although our job is far
from over, I am very proud of the ISRA's leadership role in forcing
Illinois to implement concealed carry.
In closing, I would like
to recognize the efforts of our Executive Director, Richard Pearson and
the rest of the ISRA lobbying staff. Without their diligence and
tenacity, the legislature could have easily passed a very restrictive
concealed carry bill yet still meet the requirements of the court order.
Thanks to our lobbyists' hard work, the concealed carry bill was passed
without being encumbered with gun bans, or magazine restrictions.
I would also like to
thank our many local partners who got behind this fight for the long
haul. Among them are Illinois Carry, Second Amendment Sisters, Chicago
Firearm Safety Association, Guns Save Life, and the McHenry County
Concealed Carry Association. It goes without saying that, at the
national level, the help Illinois gun owners got from the NRA and the
Second Amendment Foundation was invaluable in helping us join the 49
other states that allow good citizens to defend themselves. We are also
very grateful for the moral support lent by our fellow NRA state
affiliates from across the nation.
So, until you hear from
me again, I ask that you sit tight and be prepared to respond to our
calls for support. I cannot overemphasize the fact that passage of
concealed carry is not the end of the war to preserve and protect your
gun rights. We have merely opened a new battlefront where success will
require a vigorous defense of what we have accomplished and an
aggressive push to achieve what is right. The ISRA draws its strength
from its members. I know I can count on you all to step up and face the
challenges that lie ahead. Those future challenges will be great, but
not insurmountable. Preservation of the right to keep and bear arms is
an American cultural imperative. I am confident that the cause of the
righteous will prevail over those who seek to diminish the principles
upon which our great nation was founded.
Sincerely,
Don Moran
President
Illinois State Rifle Association
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