Opinion

Arizona -(Ammoland.com)- The sky was blue, the wind light, the temperature mild, and there were thousands of Second Amendment activists at the Rally for the Second Amendment on the 2nd of November, 2019.
Counting was imprecise without a good overhead image of the crowd. About half an hour before the rally I counted a quarter and estimated about 500. The crowd swelled as the start time approached. My best estimate was over 2,000 activists were in the crowd at peak attendance.
Rob Pincus was concerned the Nationals’ world series victory parade might impact the turnout for the Second Amendment rally. If it did, the thousands that showed up were committed and prepared. There were numerous flags, dozens of placards as well as hundreds of themed shirts, buttons, and stickers. One of the favorites was the Guns Save Lives stickers. Individual activists from the VCDL were handing them out on their own initiative, at their own expense.

There were a plethora of individually made and carried signs and placards, often variations on a theme. It was clear this was not a mass-produced rally with barely interested participants bused in. The participants I talked to came at their own expense. Many drove in from hundreds of miles away. Some flew; they came from as far away as Hawaii and California. It showed a deep commitment to showing up at an event with only six weeks’ notice. The Gadsden Flag, yellow with the “Don’t Tread on Me” logo, was popular.
Themes chanted by the enthusiastic crowd were:
We will not comply!
We are the Gun Lobby!
Shall not be Infringed!
No more restrictions!
There were about 30 speakers who were enthusiastically greeted by the rally members, including a surprise guest speaker Dan Gross, Former President of The Brady Campaign.
There was a strong showing of women activists and a number of black activists.

Attendees ranged from babies in strollers to senior citizens. There were men and women and people of every color. Activists tended to be young and middle-aged, but there were a significant number of seniors. The rally showed the support to restore the Second Amendment is not a dying movement of old, white, men.
The crowd knew its history. It cheered when speakers reminded them, in the Constitutional legal scheme, rights came from God, not from the government.
There were scattered Christian references. One modernized a command from Christ, changing a sword to a gun: “If you do not have a gun, sell your cloak and buy one!”
Another common theme from the speakers was the need for unity. Flags in the audience echoed the theme with the Revolutionary war message: Join or die!

A few things may have prevented the crowd from being larger. The rally was announced with only six weeks notice to prepare. That is not a lot of time for people who have commitments at work, at school or for family. The fevered pitch for more restrictions on the right to arms by the media has died down, as the latest outrage of the day is focused on the impeachment spectacle, created in the House of Representatives by Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Adam Schiff. President Trump and Vice President Pence both vowed to defend the Second Amendment.
There were numerous NRA hats present, but the NRA had no appointed speaker. The rally was organized while the NRA was undergoing significant internal and external attacks that have yet to be resolved.
Numerous smaller organizations supporting the Second Amendment from national to state, to the local level, attended and were enthusiastically received.
The organizers and funding for the rally were anonymous, but it was clear Rob Pincus and Jeff Knox had a major part in putting the rally together. Rob and Jeff were the primary masters of the ceremonies. They were efficient and effective. The rally wrapped up a little before 4 p.m.
As expected of a rally whose themes featured individual responsibility, respect for the law, and fidelity to the Constitution, the crowd picked up after itself. No trash was left behind.

There wasn’t a single counter-protester noticeable during the entire event.
The estimation of the number of attendees was from pictures taken. My math: The crowd was on a front of about 125 people, with a depth of about 50 people. The shape was irregular, deepest in the center and tapering to the sides. The density was variable. There were about 300 attendees along the retention walls, behind the speakers, and behind the main crowd. 125 x 50 = 6250. Reduce by half because of the shape = 3125. Reduce by 40% for density = 1825. Add 300 for those along the retention walls, behind the speakers, behind the main crowd = 2125. Estimate, over 2000 attendees at the peak.
Four hours are a long time to stand and listen to 30 speakers. The speakers were passionate, the crowd enthusiastic, the weather, perfect.
It was a good day for supporting the Second Amendment on the 2nd of November, 2019.

About Dean Weingarten:
Dean Weingarten has been a peace officer, a military officer, was on the University of Wisconsin Pistol Team for four years, and was first certified to teach firearms safety in 1973. He taught the Arizona concealed carry course for fifteen years until the goal of constitutional carry was attained. He has degrees in meteorology and mining engineering, and recently retired from the Department of Defense after a 30 year career in Army Research, Development, Testing, and Evaluation.
God Bless all those who were able to get to the Second Amendment Rally!
LOTS of people don’t have the cash to go there, myself among them, but it is a good thing the rally happened, As JESUS said “if a man has no sword (the assault weapon of the day) let him sell his cloak and buy one”. That translates as it is of such importance to be armed that it is better to be down to your underwear than to not be armed. As far as the foundation this nation is built on and as far as I am concerned, there is no higher authority than the LORD anywhere, in America or… Read more »
I could not make the 1,600 mile trip to DC from Oklahoma City, for medical reasons (impending surgery). But I was able to attend the Friday morning forum at the State Capitol, which celebrated the November 1st activation/installation of Constitutional Carry in Oklahoma! (With enough time for my shoulder to heal, I’ll make the next rally in DC…)
I see no point in marching on DC until we have to; armed. 2A is self defending, it needs to be known that we are approaching the point of no return and that there will be a cost to oathbreakers and traitors..
We need to make this an annual event on a same weekend, like last weekend in Sep so that people can plan on attending it.
There were many good things about the rally as a starting point for getting more folks to be active and start setting fires under the butts of the complacent and apathetic. Many of us are heartened by the effort. No big talk or empty threats, just people who want to preserve our rights. There were big errors in getting the word out…. Maj Toure, probably the most heartfelt speaker, was on Kennedy on FOX Business, he should have bumped the event(maybe I missed it)…. Nobody got in contact with Hannity, Bongino, Daily Wire, etc. Places where millions of people go… Read more »
Dan Gross was a speaker??? Someone tell us how THAT was received! Or, for that matter, how bad his speech was! I can give you one key reason that attendance was so sparse. The key to any 2A event in the District of Corruption is Virginia. It not only has sparse gun laws (for now!), it also has a train system (the Metro) and lots of parking. Most of all, Va has extremely motivated gun owners. Most Va gun owners could not make the rally because they were busying knocking doors, working phone banks, or otherwise stumping for VCDL-endorsed and… Read more »
I didn’t get to go, not because I didn’t want to be there.
If it’s true the Donal Trump supports red flag laws, then we’ve already lost. And while he may have taken this position up early in 2019, it seems that he has moved off of it. If not — if he secretly holds this position — then he’s lying to us when he says that he wants to protect 2A rights at just about every rally he attends. If the truth can’t be sorted out because everyone’s a sellout, then I will see you all on the other side of whatever it is that awaits us. Which, of course, will be… Read more »
When President Trump ( I love saying that ! ) can get 30 or 40 THOUSAND supporters to show up at his rallies, even in hostile liberal states, it kinda tells me that gun rights are not a high priority with most Republicans, even though a great many are gun owners ( I suppose)
I would also like to call out to Marylanders
Who’s draconian gun laws cry out for redress- where were you ? No excuses, since the rally was in YOUR neighborhood!