A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed. , THE RIGHT TO KEEP AND BEAR ARMS (Comm.Amendment Two to the Constitution was ratified on December 15, 1791. It protects the right for Americans to possess weapons for the protection of themselves. Right to Bear Arms; State Militias; Well‑Regulated Militia; District of Columbia v. "A fraud on the American public. The Second Amendment (Amendment II) to the United States Constitution protects the right to keep and bear arms. The Founding Fathers were willing to be edited, it seems, but they did not want it to be easy. How did the right "to keep and bear arms" become a part of the U.S. Constition? At issue in this case was a California law establishing a ten-day waiting period for all lawful purchases of guns.