GRPC ’08:
Electing Freedom
September 26-28
Phoenix, AZ
By Jeff Knox
(August 5, 2008) Once a year for the past 22 years, the leaders of the gun rights movement have come together with some of the nation’s most involved activists to share information, ideas, and inspiration. On September 26, 27, & 28 the movement comes together again for the 23rd annual Gun Rights Policy Conference. This year the theme is “Electing Freedom” and the event is being held in Phoenix, AZ. I want to mention right off the bat that there is no charge to attend GRPC. The Conference and all materials, including a substantial stack of firearms-related books, are absolutely free to all attendees.
Unlike the NRA Convention or SHOT Show where tens of thousands of people gather, GRPC is typically only a few hundred activists and gun rights leaders. Regulars include, Alan Gottlieb, founder of the Second Amendment Foundation and the Citizens’ Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms; Joe Tartaro, Editor of Gun Week newspaper; Chuck Cunningham, Director of Federal Affairs for NRA; scholars, historians, and authors like John Lott, Steven Halbrook, Dave Hardy, Alan Korwin, and Dave Kopel. I’m sure the lawyers from the Heller case, Alan Gura and Robert Levy will be in attendance as will current and former officers of NRA like Sandra Froman and perhaps John Sigler. Wayne LaPierre usually makes a brief appearance too.
We expect the Knox clan to be well represented as Mom, Chris, Stacey, and I are all planning to be there waving the flags of The Firearms Coalition and our new political information sharing site www.GunVoter.org.
Along with the nationally recognized names, leaders of grassroots organizations from all over the country will make the trek to Phoenix to discuss what’s been working, what hasn’t been, and what needs to happen in the future.
The event is always fast paced and full of valuable information, but also includes social time to give participants and attendees the opportunity to mix, mingle, and get to know each other. The Second Amendment Foundation provides each attendee with a large stack of books from top gun rights authors and there is plenty of opportunity to meet most of those authors and get them to provide a signature. Official functions begin on Friday evening with an informal reception and then formal presentations begin after a continental breakfast at about 8:00 on Saturday morning. A box lunch is provided at Noon and a prominent guest speaker delivers a keynote address during lunch. Awards are handed out to people who have made a significant contribution to the movement and then the panel discussions resume until about 5:00.
Saturday evening there is another reception with enough snacks to let you skip dinner. This is a great time to network and get to know folks better. There are usually a couple of hospitality suites running until late in the evening where activists build personal relationships and devise cooperative strategies. Then the panel discussions begin again early on Sunday morning.
One of the key aspects of the GRPC is the resolution process. Throughout the event attendees are invited to submit resolutions for consideration by the body. These resolutions are reviewed and sometimes refined by a Resolutions Committee and then presented to the assembly for their consideration around midday on Sunday. Adoption of resolutions is the last business of the conference and everything is generally wrapped up by one or two in the afternoon.
For obvious reasons, I expect a lot of emphasis to be placed on the November elections at this year’s GRPC. It is likely that some prominent politicians and Party leaders will be in attendance trying to curry favor for their candidates and there will be much worthwhile discussion of ways GunVoters can make a difference in local, state, and federal elections.
It is also worth noting that the event is being held at a hotel conference center just a block away from Phoenix’s Metro Center shopping mall with over 190 stores, restaurants, and shops, as well as arcades and a full-blown amusement park, so there is plenty close by to keep kids and other family members entertained if they’re not interested in sitting through hours of exciting gun rights discussions.
I encourage anyone able to attend this event to do so. It is a great learning and networking opportunity. For more information about GRPC ’08 or to register, go to www.FirearmsCoalition.org and click on “Links” and then “Links Featured in the Hard Corps Report.”
If you attend GRPC, please be sure to catch up with me and say hello. I really enjoy meeting our readers and members and getting feedback on how we’re doing. And don’t worry; I’m sure you won’t have any trouble finding me.
Permission to reprint or post this article in its entirety for non-commercial purposes is hereby granted provided this credit is included. Text is available at www.FirearmsCoalition.org. To receive The Firearms Coalition’s bi-monthly newsletter, The Hard Corps Report, write to PO Box 3313, Manassas, VA 20108.
©Copyright 2008 Neal Knox Associates