On Saturday, gun rights supporters gathered at Minnesota's state capitol. Here's the beginning of the write-up at Bearing Arms, a site that's part of Townhall Media; in Thousands Stand For Gun Rights At Minnesota Capitol Rall, Tom Knighton reports:
The anti-gunners aren’t the only ones who can rally. Pro-gunners can be very activist-like when they want to be. A prime example comes from Minnesota, where thousands attended a pro-gun rally at the state capitol.
About 2,000 people, some toting handguns and rifles, gathered on the steps of the Minnesota State Capitol Saturday to support gun owners’ rights and to decry firearm regulations proposed by some legislators.
The rally was organized and promoted by several gun-advocacy groups, including the Minnesota Gun Owners Caucus, the Gun Owners Civil Rights Alliance and the National Rifle Association. A handful of speakers, including NRA board member Willes Lee, spoke in support of gun ownership. . . .
What really matters, here, is that thousands stood before their state capitol and made it clear that they support the Second Amendment. While anti-gunners routinely think the public is really with them, this sends lawmakers a clear signal that polling numbers are irrelevant in the face of determined patriots who aren’t going down without a fight.
If showing up at Minnesota state capitol is the measure of the public being with a cause, there's a much different story happening in Minnesota than what Bearing Arms is sharing. Back on March 24, 20,000 people gathered at the state capitol asking the legislature to enact more gun safety laws and school safety measure, as we noted in Priorities: state lawmaker dares to allude to March For Our Lives on Minnesota House floor:
. . . [T]he Pioneer Press reported in Thousands protest gun violence at St. Paul’s March for Our Lives rally:
Thousands of students and supporters marched Saturday in St. Paul as part of the worldwide “March for Our Lives” demonstration to protest gun violence.
St. Paul police estimated 18,000 people marched to the state Capitol, but that figure did not include the people at the Capitol who did not march. Later in the day, the Minnesota State Patrol estimated a crowd of some 20,000. . . .
Saturday’s march in St. Paul was the largest of 13 planned protests across the state, with about 800 marches taking place worldwide. In Minnesota, protesters were also planned in Willmar, Brainerd, Duluth and Winona. . . .
KARE 11 named more of those outstate rallies in 20,000 gather in St. Paul for March For Our Lives:
Here in Minnesota, there [were] several events taking place on Saturday. Beyond the St. Paul events at the Capitol, there were events happening in Aitkin, Brainerd, Duluth, Ely, Fargo-Moorhead, Grand Marais, Grand Rapids, North Branch, Rochester, Sartell, Starbuck, Willmar, Winona and more.
Local coverage from those towns with daily newspapers describe turnout that adds hundreds more to the 20,000 in St. Paul, though one greater Minnesota students traveled to St. Paul. In Fergus Falls, the Daily Journal reported earlier that Using her voice: Local teen activist organizes transportation for students to attend ‘March for our Lives’,raising over $1000 to charter a bus to St. Paul. . . .
Those numbers suggest broad support for reasonable gun access legislation. While Mr. Knighton doesn't care for polling numbers, in Minnesota, it appears that those who showed up in March with ten times the numbers as last weekend's rally do reflect what Minnesotans want--in part.
On April 24, the Star Tribune's Judy Keen reported in Minnesota Poll: Strong majority of Minnesotans support stricter gun control:
. . .An overwhelming 9 out of 10 Minnesota voters also favor mandatory criminal background checks on all gun sales, the poll shows, including those sold privately and at gun shows. And Minnesotans in every part of the state oppose the arming of schoolteachers, which some political leaders, including President Donald Trump, have suggested.
Minnesotans are split geographically on other gun legislation, though the population-heavy urban counties favoring more restrictions; the Republican legislature, however, isn't budging at all.
Photo: Students marching to the capitol last month; photo by Anthony Souffle, Star Tribune.
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