There’s no doubt that a global effort is in motion to disarm everyone. Power brokers at the United Nations in the forefront and misty background know for there to be complete control, the people must not have arms. Ten years ago the U.N. Arms Trade Treaty was put into effect globally. While the U.S. is just a signatory of the treaty, and it's not fully ratified here, both the U.N. and ATT are still a threat to the American way of life. Recently, Julianne Versnel from the Second Amendment Foundation spoke on behalf of gun owners at the U.N. on this topic.

The overarching and crushing intent of the ATT can be described as a vehicle of tyranny. That’s not hyperbolic.

Versnel took a pragmatic approach, delivering less fire and brimstone, and more inconvenient truths.

The Tenth Conference of States Parties to the Arms Trade Treaty was held August 19-23rd, 2024.

“Mr. President, I'm not here to talk about the US Second Amendment,” Versnel said. “I am here to address the universal national right to defense itself.” 

Versnel is intimately acquainted with working with the U.N. on these matters. “I have spoken at the United Nations for the Second Amendment Foundation,” Versnel told me in an April interview. “I've spoken to the United Nations for WFSA [The World Forum on Shooting Activities], I was deeply involved in the run up to the ATT.”

In the past, Versnel said that the U.S. delegation was “very, very, very friendly” and she worked closely with them. “I don't want to say it's not friendly [now], they're pleasant,” Versnel confided in me. “But we're not on the same page.”

Versnel’s speech cut to the heart of self-reliance, “There's been much discussion about protecting the lives of ordinary children. Let's not forget that a right to life must include the fundamental right to protect and defend that law.”

Versnel continued her speech at the 10th meeting of the ATT:

As women, we must have a right to protect ourselves and our children, to protect ourselves against assault and rape. No one questions that violence against women is indebted without a means of defense and protection of self, there is no equality against gender based violence.

Most of the delegates here know in the US there is extensive firearms ownership. What you may not know is that today, almost half of the handguns in the US are owned by women.

The 10th conference put a big emphasis on women and arms, with a political declaration making women’s involvement a priority, “We recognise the need to promote the full, equal, meaningful, and effective participation of women and stress the importance of their involvement in all decision making and implementation processes relating to the Arms Trade Treaty.”

“The number of women carrying firearms for self-protection has increased, violent crime has decreased, according to the Trace,” Versnel said in her speech. “In the U.S., the increase in gun ownership by women has translated to a 12.3% drop in gun violence.”

Women in the U.S. are getting involved, and participating in self-governance, by committing to being armed. Is this the “effective participation of women” the U.N. is looking for? The drop in gun violence should be enough to galvanize Versnel’s position.

In the latter part of Versnel’s speech, she told a story about Eleanor Roosevelt. “Eleanor Roosevelt was a staunch supporter of the United Nations and the first U.S. Ambassador to the organization,” Versnel said. “She was known and admired for her beliefs in both civil rights and women's rights, including the right to defend oneself if necessary.”

Versnel continued:

Mrs. Roosevelt drove through the American South, by herself, to promote civil rights. The Secret Service begged her not to go, as there was a bounty on her head. She went anyway, without Secret Service protection. But on the seat of her car was her .38th caliber revolver. 

We can learn from Mrs. Roosevelt. No one supported the U.N. more than she did, and at the same time, she insisted on her right as a woman and a person, to have the means to defend herself. 

We urge this body to recognize the tangible results of the natural right of self-protection and the proverbial results and reduction of gender based violence occur. Thank you.

In a joint working paper, filed for this past conference, entitled “Gender Mainstreaming and Addressing Gender-Based Violence Under the Arms Trade Treaty,” women are brought up. “In 2021, 24% of women and girls who were victims of lethal violence around the world were killed by a firearm,” the paper stated.  “We also know that non-lethal gender-based violence may often be facilitated by arms.” 

The paper continued:

For example, 70-90% of incidents of conflict-related sexual violence (CSRV) are reported to involve weapons. Furthermore, understanding GBV and its impact requires an intersectional perspective: an individual’s risk of being targeted for GBV, as well as their ability to report it and access services afterwards, can be affected by other forms of discrimination in addition to gender. These include discrimination based on a person’s race, sex, religion, nationality, ethnic origin, sexual orientation, disability, age, language, social origin or other status. While ATT States Parties are seeking to mitigate these risks, their efforts are hampered by data challenges. Data on the use of weapons to facilitate GBV is often lacking, and national homicide data disaggregated by sex and whether an arm is used is, on average, more than six years old.

Strange that the paper did not address that the most effective means of self-defense for women, or other marginalized persons, is that of being armed with a firearm.

Thankfully Versnel and the Second Amendment Foundation are around to speak on behalf of gun owners and provide facts. If you'd like to see a video of Versnel's full speech you can do so HERE or in the embed below.