Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.
More than 100 gun-rights supporters rallied at the Oklahoma state Capitol to celebrate constitutional carry becoming law on the same day it went into effect.
“That is the core principal main function of government—to secure our rights—that is what government should be about, and today, in Oklahoma, we are celebrating the restoration of our rights to keep and bear arms,” state Sen. Nathan Dahm (R.) told a local news source.
House Bill 2597 legalized constitutional carry in Oklahoma after it passed by a vote of 70-30 in the House and 40-6 in the Senate. With the bill’s passage, Oklahomans can now carry firearms, openly or concealed, without a permit. Purchases of firearms still require background checks in the state.
Oklahoma joined over a dozen other states that recognized constitutional carry as law. The NRA has worked closely with the Oklahoma Second Amendment Association for nearly a decade to bring constitutional carry to the state.
“Government exists for the people, not the other way around. This law honors the right of law-abiding Oklahomans to defend themselves and their loved ones without begging for the government’s permission beforehand,” said Jason Ouimet, executive director, NRA-ILA. “The NRA fights for law-abiding gun owners because we recognize that our freedoms are fundamental and natural, not government-given.”
