Westfield City Council Ward 2 candidate Dan Allie explains a set of informational documents he helped design during a rally in West Springfield Friday. The event was organized by Oath Keepers, who, according to their website (http://oathkeepers.org/oath/), is a non-partisan association of citizens who support the Constitution. (Photo by Frederick Gore)
WEST SPRINGFIELD – Freedom was ringing all over Westside Friday, as the Massachusetts chapter of The Oath Keepers, a national organization whose mission is to support and defend the Constitution of the United States of America, held a rally on the town commons in support of the Second Amendment.
By midday, a large crowd had gathered to voice their opinions about their right to bear arms. Despite the dreary weather, these people were on hand to also hear a roster of speakers with one thing in common: a passion for protecting “God-given” rights afforded to every American by the Constitution.
David Kopacz is president of the Massachusetts Republican Assembly. Born in Belchertown and currently a resident of Ware, Kopacz is a staunch supporter of what the Oath Keepers stand for.
“When we talk about the Second Amendment, we’re talking about a right that comes from our Creator,” Kopacz said, “Rights are individual in nature, and the Second Amendment is hands off, as far as we’re concerned.”
When asked about the hot button issue of gun control, Kopacz was unwavering in his response.
“Gun registration would be followed by gun confiscation,” he said. “Today, we are using our First Amendment, the freedom of speech, to protect the Second Amendment, our right to bear arms.”
James Wallace of Newburyport, the executive director of the Gun Owners’ Action League (GOAL) was also on hand at the event, and was pleased with what he heard and saw, despite the events earlier in the day in the state’s capital.
“There is a lot going on in the state today,” said Wallace, in reference to the violent manhunt engulfing metro-Boston, “I never thought I’d see the day when the city of Boston hunkered down.”
As state representative to the National Rifle Association, Wallace is a respected voice among gun owners in the Commonwealth, and believes that the climate of the gun-control issue in Massachusetts, routinely considered one of the most anti-gun states in the Union, is slowly changing.
“As a rule, I never try to predict what the statehouse will do,” Wallace said in reference to his dealings on Beacon Hill, “But in the last few years, the Massachusetts legislature has become much more educated in regards to guns and the issues surrounding gun control.”
When asked about Massachusetts and the national debate surrounding firearms, Wallace admits to a dubious distinction he believes his state holds.
“If anything, I think Massachusetts is an example of what not to do in regards to firearms,” he said, “In 1998, there were 1.5 million licensed gun owners in Mass. Since then, that number has decreased by 85 percent, while firearm related crime has gone up 200 percent, according to the Department of Public Health.”
Also on hand for the event was Dan Allie, a Westfield resident who is running for the Ward 2 seat on the city council as a Republican.
In front of flags waving the revolutionary mantra “Don’t Tread On Me” in the spring air, Allie stated what he believes to be the biggest issues regarding firearms.
“People need to stop using deceptive language regarding guns,” Allie said, referencing politicians and the media, “‘Standard capacity’ is not the same thing as ‘high capacity’. Also, the term ‘assault weapon’ needs to stop being used when referring to hunting rifles. The AR-15 is nothing more than a .22 caliber hunting rifle that was adopted by the military and given military styling. It’s not an ‘assault weapon’.”
When asked about other issues he sees in the current state laws, Allie stated the language issue again, referring to the wordplay used by legislators as “innocuous innuendo” and calling the laws themselves “hastily passed and poorly written.”
“These laws do not affect criminals,” he said in a statement, while also mentioning that 37 out of the 38 mass shootings in the last 10 years have taken place in gun free zones.
“This is not a Republican or Democrat issue. This is an American issue. We must win the culture if we are going to win the future.”
