California Brings Some Answers—and Many Questions—to America’s Gun Violence Crisis

How the State Is Trying to Solve One of Our Most Pressing Problems

“This is not going to be one of those gun violence discussions where we have pro-gun and anti-gun people duking it out and reciting the same talking points,” said Lois Beckett, a senior reporter at the Guardian who covers gun policy, criminal justice, and the far right in the U.S., kicking off last night’s Zócalo/California Wellness Foundation panel discussion. “They are usually pretty boring, because we actually all know what they are going to say. Instead, we have three people who know each other well, have at times collaborated, and …

When the Black Panthers Lobbied For ‘Open Carry’ Laws

In 1967, Two Dozen Black Radical Activists Entered California's State Capitol With Unloaded Shotguns

In 1966, it was legal to openly carry loaded firearms in the state of California—a legacy of the Gold Rush. In Jackson, a Sierra foothills town that retained the flavor …

How the NRA Made Florida the “Gunshine State”

Decades Before the Orlando Shooting, Lobbyists in the State Helped Redefine Americans’ Constitutional Right to Bear Arms

Ever since the brutal mass shooting at a gay nightclub in Orlando in the early morning hours on June 12, Florida has become the focus of nationwide concerns about easy …