By: José Niño

Before the Coronavirus “stay at home” and “shelter in place” orders took place, Louisiana State Representative Danny McCormick introduced Constitutional Carry legislation.

McCormick’s bill, House Bill 72, would enable law-abiding Louisianans to carry concealed handguns without having to beg the government for permission.

“It’s actually preserved in our Second Amendment rights where we are a constitutional republic, the United States is, and the rights belong to the individual,” asserted McCormick.

As of now, Louisiana residents can open carry handguns without a permit and must possess a license to carry a handgun concealed.

“The [permit] fee punishes the poor and middle-lower class people,” contended McCormick. “The people that, the single mother that may want to carry a firearm in her purse, you know? It’s expensive to go take these classes, miss work for a day, pay this money, and it discriminates against people that don’t have the money or the time to go get these permits.”

If passed, Louisiana would become the 17th state in the country to make Constitutional Carry the law of the land.

Last year, Kentucky, Oklahoma, and South Dakota passed Constitutional Carry legislation.

Louisiana is currently ranked in 28th place according to Guns & Ammo magazine’s Best States for Gun Owners rankings.

Constitutional Carry is one of the few Second Amendment fights that has made solid progress in the last decade, despite D.C.’s unwillingness to consider pro-gun reforms.

José Niño is a Venezuelan American freelance writer based in Austin, Texas. Sign up for his mailing list here. Contact him via Facebook, Twitter, or email him at [email protected]. Get his e-book, The 10 Myths of Gun Control, here.