Brief History Of The Nra
Brief History of the NRA
The National Rifle Association in its simplest form is the largest gun
club in the world. The organization was founded in 1871 by former Union Army
officers to encourage sport shooting in order to have a fine tuned militia in
case of emergency. The Union officers believed that a well regulated militia
was integral for the security of a free state. It is an organization that
opposes gun control, it believes in the individual defense of the uses of
firearms, and it is interested in all aspects of shooting sports.1
Today, the organization stands with approximately 3.4 million members.
Within the NRA, there are four major organs. The Institute for Legislative
Action (is the lobbying arm), the political Victory Fund (which is a political
action committee), the Civil Rights Legal Defense Fund (deals with scholarly
research and legal developments), and the Grass Roots Division (which
specializes in raising support through grass roots methods). As a membership
organization, the NRA's directions is set by voting members. The direction of
the policies are carried out by a 75 member board that is geographically
distributed. The Board of Directors are elected by secret ballot.2
Brady Act
The Brady Act was approved by Congress in November of 1993 and was then
signed into law by President Clinton later in the month. The act was originally
named for anti gun lobbyist Sarah Brady, and not for former press secretary Jim
Brady. It was through Jim Brady's support and the media coverage that linked
his name to the act. The act requires that there be a waiting period of five
state government business days at the time an individual applies to purchase a
handgun from a federal firearm license. During the five day wait, the local
sheriff or police chief must "make a...
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