NEW YORK (March 21, 2024) – Today, Firearms Policy Coalition (FPC) and FPC Action Foundation (FPCAF) announced the filing of an important brief with the Second Circuit Court of Appeals in support of Plaintiff-Appellee Joseph Srour in Srour v. New York City, which challenges New York City’s shotgun and rifle licensing requirements. The brief can be viewed at FPCLegal.org.

“There is no historical tradition of requiring a license to possess a firearm,” argues the brief. “The only historical laws requiring a license to possess a firearm applied to persons without recognized rights at the time, namely African Americans and American Indians. These repugnant laws cannot form the historical tradition necessary for the government to satisfy its burden for several reasons.”

“New York City continues the existing trend of authoritarian governments relying on blatantly racist and discriminatory laws in an attempt to justify their modern gun control efforts,” said Cody J. Wisniewski, FPC Action Foundation’s Vice President and General Counsel, and counsel for FPC. “In reality, there is no historical basis for New York City’s modern requirement that individuals acquire a license merely to possess firearms. As such, its law is blatantly unconstitutional.”

Individuals who would like to join the FPC Grassroots Army and support important pro-rights lawsuits and programs like these can learn more at FirearmsPolicy.org. Individuals and organizations wanting to support charitable efforts in support of the restoration of Second Amendment and other natural rights can also make a tax-deductible donation to the FPC Action Foundation. For more on FPC’s lawsuits and other pro-Second Amendment initiatives, visit FPCLegal.org and follow FPC on Instagram, X (Twitter), Facebook, YouTube.

Firearms Policy Coalition (firearmspolicy.org), a 501(c)(4) nonprofit membership organization, exists to create a world of maximal human liberty, defend constitutional rights, advance individual liberty, and restore freedom. FPC’s efforts are focused on the Right to Keep and Bear Arms and adjacent issues including freedom of speech, due process, unlawful searches and seizures, separation of powers, asset forfeitures, privacy, encryption, and limited government. The FPC team are next-generation advocates working to achieve the Organization’s strategic objectives through litigation, research, scholarly publications, amicus briefing, legislative and regulatory action, grassroots activism, education, outreach, and other programs.

FPC Law (FPCLaw.org) is the nation’s first and largest public interest legal team focused on the Right to Keep and Bear Arms, and the leader in the Second Amendment litigation and research space.

FPC Action Foundation (FPCActionFoundation.org), a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, exists to create a world of maximal human liberty through charitable legal action, public policy, education, and research programs.