Celebrating Our Shooting Heritage Isn't Enough

August is National Shooting Sports Month, and there is much to celebrate.

Shooting sports and hunting have been part of American life for generations. They teach discipline and personal responsibility, connect millions of Americans to the outdoors, and are part of the culture surrounding the freedoms protected by the Second Amendment.

President Trump recognized that legacy in his message marking National Shooting Sports Month this year, with a particular emphasis on passing these traditions from one generation to the next. I'm glad to see that recognition, and to have an administration that understands the importance of recreational shooting, hunting, and access to our public lands.

But celebrating our shooting heritage isn't enough.

Proclamations are important. So is talking about National Shooting Sports Month and reminding Americans why the Second Amendment and our sporting traditions matter. But none of that, by itself, puts a young person behind a shotgun for the first time or teaches someone how to safely handle a firearm.

A young person shoulders a shotgun for the first time with a trained instructor beside them. A high school student joins a clay target team and discovers a sport that rewards discipline, focus, and responsibility. A Scout learns firearm safety at a range and feels the satisfaction of mastering a new skill. An experienced sportsman takes an afternoon to introduce someone new to the range. 

Those experiences matter. Without them, we shouldn't assume that a tradition handed down for generations will simply continue on its own.

That's a big part of why we do what we do at The 1791 Foundation. We support the people and programs that create opportunities for Americans, especially young Americans, to experience shooting sports for themselves.

I've had the chance to see some great examples of that work this summer.

The Foundation supported the USA Clay Target League's national championships, where thousands of high school and collegiate student-athletes compete. Spend any time around these young competitors, and you quickly realize that this is about much more than hitting targets. They're learning discipline and sportsmanship, building friendships, and becoming part of a community that many will remain connected to for the rest of their lives.

That’s how traditions endure — by giving the next generation the opportunity to experience them firsthand.

After all, every hunter had a first hunt. Every competitive shooter once walked onto a range as a beginner. And most people who have spent a lifetime around shooting sports can remember who first introduced them to it — a parent or grandparent, a coach, an instructor, a friend. Someone took the time.

If we want America's shooting heritage to be strong 25 or 50 years from now, it's our turn to do the same.

We can't simply assume that the next generation will find its way to a range or grow up understanding hunting, the shooting sports, and the importance of the Second Amendment. Many won't have those opportunities unless we deliberately create them.

And if their only exposure to firearms comes through politics, headlines, or popular culture, we're not only leaving an important part of the American story untold, we're putting the future of the freedoms behind that tradition at risk.

The Second Amendment protects a fundamental right. But there's also a culture of knowledge and tradition that has grown up around that right, and preserving it requires participation.

Shooting sports are one of the best ways I know to do that. They give people firsthand experience instead of asking them to form opinions about something they've never actually done.

So, yes, we should celebrate National Shooting Sports Month.

But we should also use it as a reminder to get someone to a range, support a youth shooting program, volunteer at a competition, mentor a new shooter, or help an organization in your community that's doing this work every day.

The best way to honor the shooting sports heritage previous generations handed down to us is to make sure we hand it down to the next one.

Peter Churchbourne is the Executive Director of The 1791 Foundation and a longtime advocate for hunters and conservation. Previously Director of the NRA Hunters’ Leadership Forum and a 17-year veteran of Ducks Unlimited, he has developed award-winning education resources and communications strategies to advance hunters’ rights nationwide. 

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