Around New England

Gun-Rights Supporters Rally Against Massachusetts Governor’s Closure of Gun Shops

April 27, 2020

About 80 people rallied to call for reopening gun shops in the state at the Bourne Rotary this past weekend, organizers said.

The well-travelled rotary is on the Cape side of the Bourne Bridge.

Participants included gun shop owners and other supporters of gun rights.

Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker, a Republican, has ordered gun shops closed during the coronavirus emergency, including them among the nonessential businesses currently not allowed to operate.

Opponents of Baker’s executive order argue that it violates the right to keep and bear arms guaranteed by the Second Amendment of the federal constitution.

“Our liberal GOP Governor not only closed our gun stores state wide, he prohibited online firearms courses, and made firearm businesses ineligible for state small business loans. Even the Democratic Governor of Maine followed President Trump’s guidelines and made Maine gun stores essential,” rally organizer Adam Lange said in a written statement.

Several Massachusetts gun shop owners have filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Boston asking a judge to overturn Baker’s executive order on constitutional grounds. A hearing is scheduled for Monday, May 4.

The rally in Bourne on Saturday, April 25 was sponsored by United Cape Patriots and Massachusetts Gun Rights.

Gun-rights supporters rallied at the Bourne Bridge on Saturday, April 25, 2020 against Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker’s executive order closing gun shops. Courtesy photos.