By Dave Workman
Editor-in-Chief
A fascinating and insightful 24-minute video on the history and purpose of the Second Amendment Foundation has been released on YouTube, and for those interested in the evolution of gun rights litigation and education, this is a must-see program.
Titled “Reflections: Five Decades of SAF’s 2A Advocacy,” the video features top leaders in the gun rights movement, including SAF founder and Executive Vice President Alan Gottlieb, his wife, SAF President Massad Ayoob, SAF Executive Director Adam Kraut, SAF Vice President for International Outreach Julianne Hoy Versnel, SAF Board members Tom Gresham and Tom Taylor, attorney and historian David Hardy and attorney Don Kilmer. Their perspectives and recollections bring color and life to SAF’s half-century of work to make the foundation a driving force in protecting the right to keep and bear arms.
The video “takes viewers on a historical journey,” according to a SAF release, “showcasing its commitment to defend, secure and restore the Second Amendment.”
“This video provides a great avenue to showcase the history of the organization as told by those who have supported us over the past 50 years,” Gottlieb said. “The people interviewed in these videos are the members, donors and supporters who have joined us in fighting for our civil liberties since 1974. It’s because of their tireless commitment that SAF is where it is today, and I’m excited about what the next 50 years will bring.”
“Alan started SAF in 1974 with one goal in mind – getting a case to the Supreme Court,” said SAF Kraut. “The organization reached that goal in 2010 in the all-important McDonald v. City of Chicago case and momentum hasn’t slowed since. Joining SAF in the fight are some of the staunchest Second Amendment and constitutional freedom supporters across the U.S. The next 50 years will bring even more success, and I’m confident we will continue to build on the legacy Alan started in 1974.”
SAF has always been based in the city of Bellevue, Washington, located just east of Seattle and across Lake Washington. From its headquarters, the foundation has led a crusade with the goal, as Gottlieb puts it, to “Win Firearms Freedom, One Lawsuit at a Time.”
The foundation works with a small but skilled and devoted community of attorneys who specialize in Second Amendment law.
Each year for the past 39 years, SAF has partnered with the Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms to host the “Gun Rights Policy Conference,” a gathering of many leaders in the gun rights movement and grassroots activists from across the country. This weekend event is held in various cities around the country and has convened in Chicago, Washington, DC, San Diego, Dallas, Orlando, Seattle, San Francisco, Phoenix, Houston, St. Louis and elsewhere over the past four decades.
As a result of these activities and court actions, SAF has emerged as the foremost legal powerhouse in Second Amendment litigation, frequently partnering with other organizations in lawsuits challenging restrictive gun control laws which courts have determined to be unconstitutional.
A half-century of hard work will continue paying off, thanks to the legal groundwork already accomplished. SAF has brought new staffers on board whose focus is on expanding the organization’s footprint, and garner increasing support from industry and grassroots activists. There is still much to do, and there does not appear to be any interest in slowing down.
