Community Corner

Pro-Gun Rally to 'Muster on the Battle Green'

Gun Rights Across America will rally April 19 on the Lexington landmark, and a state coordinator for the group talks about the significance of the rally's time and place.

 

Where once brave colonists stood in defiance of the Crown, a pro-Second Amendment group plans to rally for the right to bear arms on the 238th anniversary of the start of American Revolution.

Next Friday, April 19, Gun Rights Across America is holding a “Muster on the Battle Green” rally in Lexington.

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“The overall purpose of this rally is for patriots to voice opposition against proposed draconian law that further restricts our Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms,” Kevin Francisco, a state coordinator for Gun Rights Across America: Massachusetts, wrote in an email to Patch. “To also remind elected officials of their oath to protect and defend the Constitution of the United States, which includes the Second Amendment.”

Selecting the date and location for the rally -- the Battle Green -- was a calculated move by the group, and an unpopular choice among some folks here in Lexington.

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“April 19th, will be the 238th anniversary of the Battle of Lexington and Concord, which initiated on the sacred and historical site now known as the Lexington Battle Green,” Francisco wrote. “We wanted to have the rally on this location as a reminder. A reminder of what our ancestors and forefathers sacrificed for us to enjoy and exercise the rights we have today. We want people to feel the ghosts of that battlefield and let that experience inspire them to keep working hard to defend our rights. We also want to honor those who have fallen on that sacred ground, and let them know that their sacrifice was not done in vain. That we continue today, to ensure those rights they fought so hard for are being preserved.”

With less than a week to go before the rally, it’s unclear how many Gun Rights Across America supporters will turn out for the Muster on the Battle Green. As of Saturday, the event’s Facebook page had 163 people who said they were “going” and another 86 who responded with a “maybe.”

There has been some talk locally about a “counter rally,” but Francisco said that’s not a concern for his group.

“We intend to have a peaceful assembly and maintain that peace through out the whole event,” Francisco wrote. “Now if people wish to oppose us by having an assembly of their own, then more power to them. It'll just be another demonstration of how are Constitutional rights work. And who knows, maybe they'll learn a thing or two about what it means to have a Second Amendment and we'll have a few converts.”

According to a post on the organization’s website, members of the Oath Keepers will be joining the Muster on the Battle Green. Oath Keepers Founder Stewart Rhodes will be a speaker at the rally and will lead an oath renewal ceremony after his speech.

Meanwhile, the new group Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America has taken notice of the rally. Group member Elaine Pratt last week sent an email criticizing the Lexington rally and accusing Gun Rights Across America of using the historic site as a platform for boosting sales.

“Make no mistake, connecting an historic moment in national battle history with a pro-gun rally is not about educating Americans; it is about using the Second Amendment as a tool for boosting gun sales and marketing the multibillion dollar gun industry and their deadly products,” the mass email said. “It is about blocking legislation that will ‘well-regulate’ safety related to an inherently deadly product. It is about big gun profits. This is not about patriotism. This is not about defending our country or about our personal safety.”

Platt did not respond to an email inquiring about whether Moms Demand Action has plans for any actions against the beyond the mail she sent.


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