Nra
The National Rifle Association (NRA) As George Stephanopoulos, a former Clinton spokesman once said: Let me make one small vote for the NRA. They're good citizens. They call their Congressmen. They write. They vote. They contribute. And they get what they want over time.(qtd. in nra.org) The NRA is indeed all of these things, with programs to benefit a variety of Americans, sponsorship of one of Americas oldest sports, and as an organization that will stand up for its political beliefs regarding the Second Amendment. (www.nra.org) Formed in 1872 when military leaders were disappointed with the marksmanship of their soldiers, the NRA has always faced political opposition for promoting marksmanship. Although it was founded largely with the aid of financial help from New York state, in 1892, opposition forced it to close its first range in Long Island and relocate to New Jersey. This is dually discussed (nra.org; wikipedia.com) The NRA's began promoting shooting sports for youths in 1903 when NRA Secretary Albert S. Jones encouraged the establishment of rifle clubs at all major colleges, universities and military academies. By 1906, more than 200 boys were competing in matches. This tradition is carried forward to today, where more than one million youths participate in NRA and affiliated group events such as 4-H, the Boy Scouts of America, the American Legion, U.S. Jaycees to name a few. (nra.org) In 1934, the Legislative Affairs division was formed in response to repeated attacks against the Second Amendment. Since the NRA did not directly lobby during this time, the primary responsibility of this division was to notify the members quickly of legislative events and facts. The NRA magazine, The American Rifleman, published the information, however it was not disseminated quickly enough to achieve any effect by the members in response to these attacks. In 1975, they realized that this was not effective enough. The NRA formed the Institute for
Cited: "A Brief History of the NRA." About. NRA. 2006. "About." NRA Foundation. 2006.