Truckee Meadows John Brown Gun Club is an anti-racist, anti-fascist, pro-LGBTQ+ organization committed to firearms education, training, community led self-defense, and mutual aid in the Truckee Meadows and surrounding region. The primary goal of Truckee Meadows John Brown Gun Club is to educate marginalized and vulnerable communites on how to safely and responsibly use, maintain, and legally obtain firearms. Truckee Meadows John Brown Gun Club stands in solidarity with communities of color, economically distressed families and individuals, and the LGBTQ+ community.
We believe in active resistance to the corrosive and destructive social effects of white supremacy, sexism, bigotry, and economic exploitation.
We stand in defense of the well-being of the community over the enrichment of the individual, and we stand in solidarity with those who share our mission for a just future.
We are based in the Reno metro (in so-called Nevada). We welcome community members from within our regional model, a one hour radius including Carson City, Truckee, Fernley, Dayton, and Douglas County.
Inspired by John Brown
Our name comes from the abolitionist John Brown, who, in 1860, led a raid on the armory at Harpers Ferry intending to start a slave liberation movement (with support from Harriet Tubman).
While that raid failed, Brown’s actions instilled fear in slave owners, and he was celebrated in the popular Union marching song, “John Brown’s Body.”
Today, we are motivated by his famous quote:
"What we need is action!"
We Organize Against Fascism
We work to counter the rise of fascist and far-right groups and entities in the Truckee Meadows.
That includes disrupting fascists and their structures to keep them from effectively organizing, and especially resisting fascists holding public events and maintaining a public presence.
We Train In Defense
We host ad-hoc Community Range Days (weather permitting and excluding December/January) to legally train community members for the purpose of community and self defense. Contact us to schedule a range day.
We fully stand for the right of all adults who would defend themselves and their communities against far-right violence. This right includes the right to own, carry, and train with tactically useful rifles, pistols, and body armor.
We train in defense; we are not a militia. We protect us.