As New Mexicans, our Second Amendment freedoms play an integral part in our history, culture, and way of life.

Even though the Second Amendment’s primary purpose is to provide a check on governmental power, guns serve many important roles in our daily lives. From hunting and sporting, to protecting our livestock and self-defense, our freedom to own a firearm is extremely important for many residents of our state.

Hunting is a pastime for New Mexicans. It builds community and teaches our children patience, resilience, and self-reliance. It helps us put food on our tables and can be an important source of nutrition for struggling families. Guns are a critical component of this tradition. They help us instill in our children the importance of care and caution, while their mechanical complexity teaches attention to detail.

Protecting yourself and your property from violence is a necessity regardless of where you live but is especially pronounced in a large rural state like New Mexico, where law enforcement resources are often stretched thin and it may take half an hour or longer for help to arrive. For farmers and ranchers, guns protect their livelihood and families from attack by predators. Second Amendment rights are essential for citizens to defend themselves and others in emergency situations.

Many of us have family roots in New Mexico going back many decades or even centuries. However, our state is not as safe as it once was and many New Mexicans are being forced to move to states like Texas and Arizona in order to find a reprieve from the crime wave that the Progressives’ attempts to take firearms out of the hands of law-abiding citizens will only make worse.

Even though crime runs rampant in our communities, progressive Democrats are nevertheless escalating their efforts to disarm you, taking away your freedoms, and leaving law-abiding New Mexicans at the mercy of criminals who will refuse to follow any gun-control scheme.

We know that gun control strips us of our safety, wreaks havoc on our time-honored traditions, and makes it more difficult for our fellow New Mexicans to feed their families. We need to make sure that our state has more responsible gun owners – not fewer – to bring much-needed safety to our communities.

With your help, we can make sure that all New Mexicans are prepared to respond to fight back against external threats and safeguard our freedoms.

The right to own firearms is fundamental to our rights as Americans. Join our movement and share our vision with your friends, family members, and colleagues.