Today’s feature is from the National Shooting Sports Foundation. 

It won’t be passing Constitutional carry anytime soon, but New York — particularly New York City — is seeing a surge in gun purchases and jam-packed permit courses required by the state just for Gothamites to exercise their Second Amendment rights.

Gun store retailers are working overtime to quell anxious and worried residents of the nation’s largest city, even as those customers are shocked to realize they aren’t able to walk in, purchase a firearm, and leave with their new gun that same day – or week, or even month.

And who can blame them?

Gun control politicians, long in control in the Empire State, have passed so many restrictions on law-abiding New Yorkers to exercise their Constitutional rights that far too many simply, out of frustration, give up.  Those roadblocks, in essence, deny New Yorkers their ability to keep and bear arms and, at a time when many rush to the licensed gun retailer, the backlogs and bottlenecks can be jarring — especially for first-time buyers. Erecting barriers to the exercise of Second Amendment rights to frustrate citizens into just giving up is the intent of this regulatory scheme.

City Residents Fearful

New York City has seen an explosion of applicants seeking to obtain the state’s required permission slip to exercise their Second Amendment rights since 2022. That’s when the U.S. Supreme Court in its Bruen decision struck down New York state’s restrictive and subjective “may issue” permit scheme that left most New Yorkers out of options for protecting themselves, their property and their loved ones. Even before that SCOTUS ruling, there was a surge in riots, looting and crime during the coronavirus pandemic, defund the police policies were increasingly implemented and New York policies like cashless bail and soft-on-crime prosecutors like Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg let criminals back out on the streets with little or no punishment for their crimes. That does not even account for rising law enforcement retirements leaving the city increasingly vulnerable to criminal violence.

All of that was happening even before the horrific Hamas terrorist attacks on Israel on October 7, 2023, and the recent election of avowed antigun and defund the police New York City mayor Zorhan Mamdani. His election has led to a new wave of New York City police officers filing for retirement.

Gun permit applications are skyrocketing. Prior to the Bruen decision, on average, fewer than 100 law-abiding New York City residents each month applied for a permission slip to carry a firearm in the city for self-protection. There was a surge during the coronavirus pandemic and a post-Bruen surge, with the monthly average reaching 600 before stabilizing at between 400–500 for a consistent stretch, according to data from the New York State Police Department. Following the October 7 terrorist attacks in Israel, the next month permit applications reached an all-time high at more than 1,270 — led by Jewish New Yorkers who decided to exercise their Second Amendment rights. Since then, an average of 700–800 permit applicants attempt the process each month, all just to exercise a God-given right enshrined in the Constitution.

Non-Traditional Gun Owners Leading the Way

Over the course of the past five or six years, the explosion of new first-time gun buyers has changed the look of the gun-owning community for the better.  NSSF has always said the Second Amendment is for everyone. Those millions of first-time gun owners have increasingly looked more like America, not just “old, pale and male” as previously caricatured. In New York’s case, that includes Jewish New Yorkers, African Americans, Hispanic and Asian Americans, lesbian and gay New Yorkers and more. And so long as they aren’t prohibited by law, owning a gun is their Constitutional right.

But New York still has in place restrictions that make it overly burdensome, time-consuming and difficult for law-abiding New Yorkers to purchase a firearm — a process that can take up to a year or longer. That includes a rigorous firearm training and safety course despite the factthat “New York hasn’t standardized the classes beyond outlining a handful of topics to touch on.”

That makes it extremely difficult for would-be firearm purchasers to go to their neighborhood firearm retailer and go home with a safe and reliable self-defense tool.

In the case of Jewish New Yorkers who saw the city elect Mamdani as their next mayor, police officers choosing to retire because of it and who see a rise in antisemitic violence in the city with the world’s largest Jewish population outside of Israel, Second Amendment rights have a new appeal.

“It’s getting busy because of him,” longtime New York City gun safety instructor Lance Dashefsky recently told the New York Post, referring to Mayor-elect Mamdani. “We ain’t fleeing — we’re here to stay. We’re not victims anymore.”

“The NYPD is all retiring – we have to fight for ourselves,” added Michael Bergida, who opened a gun shop in Marine Park, Brooklyn, called Samson Armory.

Another New York City firearm instructor, Ross Den of Brooklyn, said anyone who was ever on the fence about getting a concealed carry weapon is no longer.

“There are plenty of rabbis who carry – shul is where the greatest threat is,” Den told the Post, adding, “People are beginning to wake up and are now realizing they have to defend themselves and not rely on the cavalry to come save them.”

Industry Remains Top Ally

Despite the roadblocks erected to slow New Yorkers from exercising their Constitutional rights, the firearm industry remains committed to ensuring those rights cannot be unconstitutionally infringed. If New Yorkers — especially those in the city — are “gun curious,” they should visit their neighborhood firearm retailer to simply ask questions. They will find a welcoming and friendly environment with industry advocates who are there to help them learn, train and protect what matters most — their lives, their families and their homes and property.

“We are Jewish and we will protect ourselves – even if the mayor despises us,” a woman visiting a gun retailer told the Post. “We will have a say in our protection and not have to rely on others.”

The firearm industry steadfastly remains committed to being there by her side as well. The Second Amendment is there for all law-abiding Americans to protect themselves.

— Larry Keane 

Lawrence G. Keane is the Senior Vice President and General Counsel for NSSF, The Firearm Industry Trade Association.