Gun ownership among Democrats is on the rise, according to a recent Wall Street Journal report. This trend marks a significant shift in American gun culture, which has long been dominated by conservative white men.

Surveys and growing gun groups indicate that liberals, minorities, and progressives are increasingly purchasing firearms. Jennifer Hubbert, an anthropology professor at Lewis & Clark College, notes, “It’s a group of people who five years ago would never have considered buying a gun.”

The NORC at the University of Chicago found that 29% of Democrats or Democrat-leaning individuals had a gun at home in 2022, up from 22% in 2010. Factors contributing to this shift include rising concerns about personal safety and a volatile political climate.

Today’s liberal gun owners are more diverse than their predecessors. The National Shooting Sports Foundation reported the largest increase in Black Americans buying guns compared to any other racial group in 2023. Women accounted for nearly half of new gun buyers from 2019 to 2021, according to the 2021 National Firearms Survey.

Related Story: Why Anti-Gun Americans Have Joined Wave of New Gun Owners

Some new liberal firearm owners keep their purchases private due to the taboo nature of guns among many on the left. Randy Miyan, who runs Liberal Gun Owners, a 5,000-member group, said, “We have to have harbors and havens.”

Tom Nguyen, founder of L.A. Progressive Shooters, provides a space for liberals to learn about firearms. He stated, “People were hungering for a space that was not this hyperaggressive, male-dominated, toxic gun world.”

While this trend might suggest a potential for compromise in the gun debate, the country’s sharp partisan divide makes this unlikely. Many liberal gun owners, like Michael Ciemnoczolowski in Iowa, support gun restrictions such as universal background checks while exercising their right to own firearms for personal safety.

Read more at The Wall Street Journal