Peaceful Second Amendment Rally Confounds Media [OPINION]

As many as 22,000 supporters of the Second Amendment rallied peacefully at Capitol Square in Richmond, Virginia on Monday, defying expectations by the nation's news media that the event would turn violent and be dominated by white supremacist groups and Nazis.

Democrat Governor Ralph Northam declared a state of emergency in advance of the rally and banned weapons from Capitol Square. Thousands of armed demonstrators preferred to remain in the streets just outside the square where they could openly carry their guns.

To the best of my knowledge, there was only one arrest made during the event and that was a young lady who refused to remove a bandana from her face after being given multiple opportunities by police to comply with their request to do so. The media was so hoping for another Charlottesville, but they didn't get it.

Not only were the demonstrators peaceful, they were also tidy, as organizers remained behind when the rally was over to clean up trash and litter left behind by participants.

The rally comes as Democrats, the new majority in the Virginia legislature, are attempting to pass new gun laws. Some have advocated for the forceful confiscation of various weapons from law-abiding citizens. This has been a call to action for lawful gun owners and supporters of the Second Amendment nationwide.

Monday's rally debunked the usual media rhetoric that gun owners are simply a bunch of militia-type toothless goobers with Nazi tats adorning their chests. The crowd was a sea of American faces. There were white faces, black faces, brown faces, gay faces, and straight faces in that crowd. There were women as well as men, rich and poor, and they were all there to defend their right to own guns.

The national news media has tried and has failed again to gin up controversy over the right to bear arms under the Constitution of the United States. In fact, all of the media's foolishness may have helped to galvanize the gun rights community.

Barry Richard is the host of The Barry Richard Show on 1420 WBSM New Bedford. He can be heard weekdays from noon to 3 p.m. Contact him at barry@wbsm.com and follow him on Twitter @BarryJRichard58. The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of the author.