Second Amendment Working Exactly as Intended

To guarantee that white men have the weapons to keep down the ni**ers.

The real reason the Second Amendment was ratified, and why it says “State” instead of “Country” (the Framers knew the difference – see the 10th Amendment), was to preserve the slave patrol militias in the southern states, which was necessary to get Virginia’s vote. Founders Patrick Henry, George Mason, and James Madison were totally clear on that . . . and we all should be too. In the beginning, there were the militias. In the South, they were also called the “slave patrols,” and they were regulated by the states.

— Thom Hartmann | The Second Amendment was Ratified to Preserve Slavery

Digby:

The original sin of slavery just filters through our entire cultural and civic foundation, doesn't it?

I can't say that I'm completely surprised that the 2nd Amendment had a strong pro-slavery component considering the cultural fault lines. The idea that everyone was running in fear of the future government they were creating never rang true, despite Jefferson's musings about the need for revolution every once in a while. The need to raise a militia to repel foreign invaders? Of course. Especially since they expressly provided for no standing army. But there was always something else in there. And this makes sense.

Don't pretend it's ever been about anything else.