What is the Second Amendment and why is the US gun lobby so powerful?

Despite tens of thousands of US shooting deaths every year, many see gun ownership as a constitutional right

The modern application of the Second Amendment has caused a great deal of debate. AFP

As Americans process yet another school shooting, the debate over gun control and the Second Amendment is once again raging in the US.

On Tuesday, a teenage gunman killed 19 young children and two teachers at a Texas primary school, prompting US President Joe Biden to denounce the country's gun lobby and vow to end the cycle of mass shootings.

But despite the tens of thousands of people killed by guns every year, many in the US see gun ownership as a constitutional right, protected by the Second Amendment.

Alanna De Leon writes the name of her friend, Annabelle Rodriguez, who died in the shooting. AFP

Pallbearers carry the coffin of Amerie Jo Garza into Sacred Heart Catholic Church. AP

Pallbearers carry the coffin of Amerie Jo Garza, who died in the mass shooting at Robb Elementary School. AFP

A memorial in Town Square, Uvalde, Texas, for victims of the Robb Elementary school shooting. Reuters

A woman places a rose on Layla Salazar’s memorial cross, who was one of the victims that died in the shooting. Reuters

Bags with brisket sandwiches and a snack that will be sold at a fundraiser for families of the victims. Reuters

Ashtyn Leigh, 18, hands a man a brisket meal. Reuters

A choir sings in front of the memorial. Reuters

People pray in front of memorial crosses. Reuters

Nineteen children and two adults were killed in the shooting. AFP

People visit a memorial for the victims. AFP

Flowers are left outside the school. AFP

Twenty-one empty chairs are seen outside of a daycare center as a memorial for the victims. AP Photo

Football teammates of Tess Mata, who died in the Texas school shooting, cry as they visit a makeshift memorial outside the Uvalde County Courthouse. AFP

A football teammate of shooting victim Tess Mata cries, supported by her mother. AFP

Texas police faced angry questions over why it took an hour to stop the gunman who murdered 19 children and two teachers in Uvalde, as video emerged of desperate parents begging officers to storm the school. AFP

Activists join Senate Democrats outside the Capitol, in Washington, to demand action on gun control legislation after the killings at the Texas elementary school this week. AP

The George R Brown Convention Centre, site of the National Rifle Association annual convention. Days after the deadliest mass school shooting in Texas history, the gun lobbyist group is meeting in Houston, from Friday until Sunday. Reuters

Pastor Carlos Contreras preaches to his congregation as photos of some of the children killed in the mass shooting at Robb Elementary flash on the screen at Primera Iglesia Bautista, in Uvalde. Reuters

People march after a vigil held to stand with the Uvalde families and demand an end to gun violence in Newtown, Connecticut. AP

A woman holds up a banner at the end of the vigil in Newtown, Connecticut. AP

Newtown was the scene of the 2012 attack at Sandy Hook Elementary School, when 20 pupils and six teachers were killed by a gunman. AP

Candles are lit for each victim as people pray at St Philip's Episcopal Church. EPA

A makeshift memorial in front of Robb Elementary School. AFP

Omahar Padillo with his son Omahar Jr, 12, during a community prayer, in Pharr, Texas, for the shooting victims at Robb Elementary School. AP

Omahar Padillo Jr, 12, and his sister Samantha, 9, with their mother, Silvia Padillo, write messages in support of the victims at Robb Elementary School. AP

A vigil for the victims of the mass shooting at Robb Elementary School. AFP

A young mourner at the vigil in Uvalde, Texas. AFP

Families at the vigil. AFP

A woman holds a photo of Nevaeh Bravo, who was killed in the mass shooting, during a vigil for the victims of the massacre in Uvalde, Texas. AFP

Uvalde County Sheriff Ruben Nolasco is comforted by Senator Ted Cruz during a vigil at the Uvalde County Fairplex Arena. AP

Diana Karau of Uvalde with a therapy dog named Tritan before a vigil to honour those killed at Robb Elementary. AP

Gun-control advocates Dana Cibulski, left, and Judi Giannini attend a vigil outside the National Rifle Association headquarters in Fairfax, Virginia after the mass shooting in Uvalde, Texas. AFP

Uziyah Garcia, 8, was among those killed in the shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas. AP

Pastor Jaime Cabralez, the uncle of shooting victim 10-year-old Eliahana Cruz Torres, is surrounded in prayer at his church in Uvalde, Texas on Wednesday. Reuters

A woman embraces a child outside Willie de Leon Civic Centre, in Uvalde, where pupils were taken after the school shooting. Bloomberg

Gun-control advocates hold a vigil outside the National Rifle Association (NRA) headquarters in Fairfax, Virginia. AFP

A woman and child leave the Civic Centre. Reuters

What is the Second Amendment?

The Second Amendment to the US Constitution, ratified in 1791, states: “A well-regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed.”

The amendment was based on English common law as well as the English Bill of Rights of 1689, which allowed for the possession of weapons for use in self-defence and resistance to oppression.

This concept carried over to the American colonies in the form of the militia, a group made up of able-bodied men obligated to defend a specific territory. Militias became integral during the American Revolution.

Due to fears of a foreign power attempting to invade the young country or that the government would eventually come to oppress its citizens, the Second Amendment was added to the constitution.

The modern application of the amendment has caused a great deal of debate: some Americans believe it gives all citizens the right to own almost any weapon they choose for the purpose of self-defence.

Others say it is antiquated and only applies to those in a “militia” — now the National Guard and other formal military organisations.

Why is the US gun lobby so powerful?

Every year, the US gun lobby spends millions of dollars supporting various politicians at the local, state and federal levels.

The most prominent group within the lobby is the NRA, the National Rifle Association, which bills itself as the country's “oldest civil rights organisation”.

Previously operating more like a club promoting gun ownership for sport, in the 1970s, the NRA became increasingly aligned with the Republican Party after the passing of the Gun Control Act of 1968, which mandated that gun dealers be federally licensed and established restrictions on particular types of firearms.

Over the past several decades, the NRA has poured money into lobbying efforts, backing conservative politicians and fighting against stricter gun control in Congress.

The organisation spent nearly $5 million on lobbying in 2021, website Open Secrets reported.

But the NRA is far from some shadowy organisation funded by big business: while some of the NRA's lobbying money comes from big corporations, including weapons manufacturers, the majority of its funds come from everyday Americans.

Since 2005, the NRA Political Victory Fund, the organisation's political action committee, has received nearly $85m in contributions from individual donors, according to CNNMoney.

The man who killed 19 children and two teachers in Texas bought his guns legally days before the attack, purchasing two rifles from a federally licensed dealer along with 375 rounds of ammunition, AP reported.

The NRA issued a statement about the shooting, saying its "deepest sympathies are with the families and victims involved in this horrific and evil crime".

The organisation also claimed the massacre was "the act of a lone, deranged criminal".