Abstract
This article focuses attention on an oft-neglected dimension of the individual right to bear arms enshrined in the Second Amendment: the right to self-defense against animals. Although the right to self-defense against criminals and resistance to tyranny have been heavily analyzed as a foundational concern in forming the Second Amendment right, the Amendment’s role in protecting people, livestock and crops from animal attacks has been given short shrift. But many of the same concerns that motivated the Founders to keep their guns at the ready for protection from animals, though less in the public eye today, still exist in one form or another.
In the Colonial and Founding eras, defense against wild animal attacks, and protection of home and property against depredation by wild creatures, as well as hunting for sustenance and as a source of income, were some of the most frequent reasons for firearm use.
Though attacks by animals are now rarer than they were, they continue to occur today, and firearms remain a valuable defensive tool against them. And while subsistence and market hunting, common during the Founding period, are less prevalent today, recreational hunting is common, and game still forms an important part of the diet of many Americans and provides a reliable source of high-quality protein. The importance of the right to bear arms for protection against wild animals in the Founding Period confirms that the Second Amendment right was intended to extend beyond the home. The continued need for firearms for self-defense, the protection of crops and livestock, and hunting reaffirms the wisdom of that decision.
Recommended Citation
Mark W. Smith,
“Wolves and Grizzlies and Bears, Oh My!”: Exploring Historical and Contemporary Contexts for Justice Kennedy’s Founding Era Application of the Personal Right to Bear Arms,
46
S. Ill. U. L.J.
467
(2022).
Available at:
https://opensiuc.lib.siu.edu/siulj/vol46/iss3/3