Martin Luther King, Jr. on Guns for Defensive Purposes

According to UCLA Law Prof. Adam Winkler:
"Civil-rights activists, even those committed to nonviolent resistance, had long appreciated the value of guns for self-protection. Martin Luther King Jr. applied for a permit to carry a concealed firearm in 1956, after his house was bombed. His application was denied, but from then on, armed supporters guarded his home. One adviser, Glenn Smiley, described the King home as “an arsenal.” William Worthy, a black reporter who covered the civil-rights movement, almost sat on a loaded gun in a living-room armchair during a visit to King’s parsonage."

See also Winkler's excellent book, Gunfight at p. 235.  This is a very well-researched, scholarly book that is very readable.  It is a history of guns and gun control in the U.S. and the S.Ct. decision in U.S. v. Heller.


















'