Why More Liberals Are Buying Guns

What It Covers

NPR investigates a growing trend of liberals, people of color, and LGBTQ individuals purchasing firearms for the first time, driven by fears of political violence and civil unrest under Trump's second administration.

Key Questions Answered

• •Liberal gun ownership surge: Liberal Gun Club membership grew 67% since November 2024, from 2,700 to 4,500 members, with training requests increasing fivefold as progressives seek firearms education in politically safe environments away from conservative-dominated gun culture.
• •Demographic shift in gun buyers: University of Chicago data shows 29% of Democrats or Democrat-leaning households owned guns in 2022, up seven percentage points from a dozen years earlier, with African Americans and women disproportionately represented among new purchasers.
• •Trans community arming concerns: Trump administration officials considered classifying transgender people as mentally ill to bar firearm ownership, but the NRA opposed any sweeping gun bans based on non-criminal status, creating unexpected alliance between conservative gun rights groups and trans advocates.
• •Protective training motivation: New gun owners cite specific fears including ICE enforcement actions, racial harassment on college campuses, and potential targeting by hate groups, with most estimating actual violence risk at 20% or lower but wanting preparedness regardless.