OPINION

Anti-terror Treaty Seen as 2nd Amendment Threat

Townhall Staff
Townhall Staff  |  Jun 09, 2011
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A “Small Arms Treaty” currently being considered by the United Nations could end up infringing on American Second Amendment rights. While the measure must first pass the U.N. and then manage to secure U.S. Senate ratification, it could result in firearms licensing and confiscation, University of Houston professor Larry Bell writes in an Op-Ed for Forbes.

The treaty is aimed at fighting terrorism, insurgency and international crime syndicates but “you can be quite certain that an even more insidious threat is being targeted – our Constitutional right for law-abiding citizens to own and bear arms,” Bell writes.

While noting the terms have yet to be made public, Bell argues the measure could force the United States to enact tougher licensing requirements, confiscate and destroy all “unauthorized” civilian firearms, ban the trade, sale and private ownership of all semi-automatic weapons, and create an “international gun registry, clearly setting the stage for full-scale gun confiscation.”