2018
- not-for-profit organization
- incorporated in Wichita Kansas on October 8, 2018
About the Socialist Rifle Association
The Socialist Rifle Association (SRA) is a national firearms organization for left-leaning gun owners, headquartered in Wichita, Kansas. It began as an informal online group and was incorporated as a Kansas nonprofit, Socialist Rifle Association Inc., on October 8, 2018; later that month it merged with an earlier SRA entity organized in New Mexico. The group describes itself as socialist and pro-gun-rights and focuses on firearms ownership, training and self-defense for working-class and marginalized communities, especially gun owners who do not feel represented by traditional gun-rights organizations.
Membership grew quickly. Public radio coverage in November 2018 reported nearly 1,000 paying members; the organization reported about 2,000 members in July 2019 and announced 10,000 members in November 2020, a self-reported figure. It is organized as a 501(c)(4) advocacy group led by a National Assembly of elected chapter representatives, with dozens of local chapters across the country. Early members told reporters the SRA is not a militia and does not support violent activism, and its rules have barred open carry at demonstrations. The SRA has also organized disaster relief efforts, including mutual aid after Hurricane Michael in 2018. For gun owners across the political spectrum, the group is one example of how firearms ownership in the United States has broadened well beyond its traditional base.
Key Facts
- October 8, 2018: Socialist Rifle Association Inc. incorporated in Kansas
- October 16, 2018: Merger agreement with the earlier New Mexico SRA entity
- 2018: Joins the Hurricane Michael mutual aid relief effort
- July 2019: Reports about 2,000 members
- November 3, 2020: Announces 10,000 members
Sources
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