The Concrete Second Amendment

Traditionalist Interpretation and the Right to Keep and Bear Arms

Since the modern affirmation of the Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms in District of Columbia v. Heller (2008), much scholarly attention has focused on two issues: the soundness of Heller’s originalist approach to the Second Amendment, as well as the pragmatic question of whether the Second Amendment right is now being underenforced by the lower federal courts.

This Article examines a subject at the intersection of both of these questions: the role of traditionalist interpretation in interpreting and applying the Second Amendment. It particularly focuses on how traditionalist interpretation sheds light on the constitutionality of restrictions on the carrying of handguns for self-defense, the issue before the U.S. Supreme Court in the case of New York State Rifle & Pistol Association v. Bruen.

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