Gun Owners of America will be hosting its inaugural advocacy and leadership summit in Knoxville, Tennessee, this summer and said every attendee will be allowed to carry their personal firearm.
The no-compromise gun rights group will have its event beginning Aug. 16 and expects more than 25,000 people to attend speeches from gun rights leaders, educational panels and an industry expo, all while being able to carry their own guns.
Tennessee adopted a law in 2021 allowing permitless open and concealed carry for lawful handgun owners, which now covers state residents age 18 or older. Tennessee also honors concealed carry permits from other states.
Organizers said the conference will take on heightened importance this year, coming a few months ahead of the presidential election.
“With gun owners, manufacturers, and dealers facing ever growing pressure and outright hostility from so many anti-gun forces today, this election is without a doubt going to be the most critical in history for Second Amendment rights,” Erich Pratt, GOA’s senior vice president, said in a statement.
“With that in mind, our goal is to make this the premiere event bringing together Second Amendment enthusiasts and advocates as we prepare for the political fight of our lives this November,” he said.
GOA was founded in 1976 by late California State Sen. Bill Richardson. The group’s leaders have fought for citizens’ Second Amendment rights for the past 30 years, including the right of gun owners to sue and recover damages from the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms for harassment and unlawful seizure of firearms, according to its website.