My home state of Georgia tends to be pretty pro-gun. However, so-called public media here isn’t any different, generally speaking, than anywhere else.

Which is why a post by Georgia Public Broadcasting caught my eye.

It seems they opted to take a look at the National Association of African-American Gun Owners.

Cautiously, I clicked on the story, ready to see the anti-gun nuttery I expected to see. Surprisingly, I didn’t find it.

No, seriously.

When the COVID-19 pandemic fueled a rise in firearms sales, the National Library of Medicine (NIH) found Black Americans among the fastest-growing segment of gun owners.

Over the weekend, 1,500 Black firearm owners attended the first-ever convention of the National Association of African American Gun Owners, or NAAGA, in Atlanta.

The group’s website describes it as a “pro-2nd Amendment organization focused on the preservation of our community through armed protection and community building” and as a “hub and network for all African American firearm owners, organizations, gun clubs and outdoor enthusiasts.”

Douglas Jefferson, NAAGA Executive Vice President, said, like everyone else, that Black Americans are buying guns for personal safety.

“Too many in our community… actually live in communities where there are African Americans who have either victimized them or victimized friends and family,” Jefferson said.

It’s one reason the NIH reports more Black women are buying guns.

There’s also mention of how gun control originated as a way to keep guns out of the hands of black men and women.

In fact, there’s not really anything there I can find a problem with. It’s a very balanced look at a pro-gun group. It’s the kind of media I only wish we’d get elsewhere, as opposed to the attempted hatchet jobs we’ve seen.

But the question is, why?

Why do we see this treatment for NAAGA when we wouldn’t see it for pretty much anyone else?

Well, part of it is that a group like NAAGA undermines the typical lines of attack against pro-gun groups. You can’t exactly call them a bunch of old white guys, now can you? I’m sure someone can find a way to argue they’re still white supremacists, that kind of argument gets very convoluted quickly and doesn’t stick like a lot of people might like.

That’s part of why NAAGA is probably going to be so important in preserving our gun rights.

You can’t attack them quite the same way you can the NRA.

So, Georgia Public Broadcasting didn’t try. They just reported on the group–founded by a Georgia resident–and presented it in a fairly unbiased way.

Yet their pro-gun message, that law-abiding gun owners aren’t the problem be they white, black, purple, or whatever.

The problem is and will always be those who break the law, and since they’ll do that, they’ll break the law to obtain firearms regardless of what rules are put in place.  If we want to make a difference, we need to start there, not with law-abiding citizens.

I’m pretty sure GPB didn’t want to be unbiased, but I’m glad to see it just the same.