Image Credit: Wid Lyman | Border Hawk 
Hundreds of Virginia residents turned out in Richmond this weekend to demonstrate against a sweeping gun-control package now under review by Gov. Abigail Spanberger (D).
Men and women carrying rifles and other firearms gathered outside the Virginia State Capitol on Saturday to protest a historic violation of Constitutionally-protected rights looming in the Commonwealth.
“We are out here to fight for our Second Amendment rights,” a Marine Corps veteran told BorderHawk.news.
“They don’t even know what they are trying to legislate. They just know, ‘Guns scary. Guns bad.’ What they are doing is not going to make a difference in crime, it’s not going to make a difference in shootings. It’s an attack on people who fundamentally disagree with them on what the Constitution means.”
Attendees handed out 30-round magazines for AR-15 rifles, which would be banned from being purchased in Virginia under the proposed laws.
“I served 20 years for this country. Every single Constitutional right is something I fought for and believed in,” another veteran stated.
“They’re trying to take what I believe is some of my Constitutional freedom away.”
A man dressed as Batman warned that “people need to be able to defend themselves.”
“If they make it illegal for law-abiding citizens to own guns, criminals still have guns. It doesn’t check them . . . It’s important that everybody has a right to have a weapon.”
SB749 has already been passed by both Democrat-controlled chambers of the state legislature and is now on the desk of Gov. Spanberger, who has until April 13 to decide whether or not to sign it.
State Sen. Saddam Azlan Sadim (D), who was born in Bangladesh, introduced the bill in January 2026.
If SB749 is signed into law, the sale, purchase, import, manufacture, or transfer of most “assault weapons” and high-capacity magazines would be illegal, with some exceptions.
“As the mother of three daughters in Virginia public schools and a former federal law enforcement officer who carried a gun every day, Governor Spanberger knows how important it is to make sure kids and families are safe,” a spokesperson stated.
“The Governor is grateful for the efforts of legislators and advocates to address gun violence in Virginia communities, and she looks forward to reviewing all legislation that comes to her desk.”
The Second Great Crusade Has Begun
