The message being delivered to the crowd gathered in Diamond Park Saturday was clear — the right to carry a gun should be protected.

Kim Stolfer, president of the Firearms Owners Against Crime, was the keynote speaker at the second annual Butler County Second Amendment Rally, which was held in conjunction with the new Butler City Open Carry Day.

Stolfer talked about the 148 pages of state law covering firearms, saying how they infringe on gun owners' rights.

“This is tantamount to reaching into each of your wallets and taking money out without your permission,” he said.

Stolfer also cited 101 anti-gun federal laws as more examples of efforts made to keep gun owners from protecting themselves.

He said without vigilance and awareness, Pennsylvanians would lose even more rights as has happened in other states.

“It can go away in the blink of an eye,” Stolfer said.

He accused billionaires such as Michael Bloomberg and Bill Gates as well as groups such as CeaseFirePA of pushing for unfair limitations.

“We need sanity in our laws,” Stolfer said. “We need to fix these laws.”

Rich Wilson, event co-organizer and regional coordinator for the FOAC, agreed, saying anti-gun law proponents are not upfront about their motivations.

“'We're not taking away guns.' That's a big lie,” Wilson said.

He pointed to a quote from former Attorney General Janet Reno that the prohibition of private firearms is the ultimate goal.

Wilson estimated 250 people attended the rally, which drew roughly 50 last year.

“Next year, we'll top 500,” he said in an interview.

Wilson, a retired police officer, explained the reason for an open carry day even though Pennsylvania offers open-carry permits.

“The reason for it is to draw attention to it,” he said.

Mayor Tom Donaldson, who also spoke at the rally, said there is a fight to protect people's Second Amendment rights.

“People have a problem with us — gun owners,” Donaldson said in an interview. “Without the Second Amendment, there are no other amendments.”

Sheriff Mike Slupe, who worked with Wilson on the rally, also talked to the crowd.

“I appreciate the opportunity to speak to those in attendance and reinforce our strong Second Amendment stance in Butler County,” Slupe said in an interview.

State Sen. Scott Hutchinson, R-21st, attended the rally to show his support, but did not give a speech.

“It's celebrating the freedom that Americans have,” Hutchinson said. “Many people don't understand what the Second Amendment means. They're susceptible to half-truths about it.”

State Rep. Tedd Nesbit, R-8th, also attended, but gave no speech.

The Butler High School Rifle Team received special recognition.

Butler County Assistant District Attorney Ben Simon delivered a speech about gun owners' rights.

“Our founding fathers, especially James Madison, were very clear that the Second Amendment … is not about the right to shoot deer or shoot at paper targets,” Simon said. “They knew what a king could do, and they certainly knew what tyranny was.”

He said the right to bear arms is preserving liberty.

Simon said awareness is the key.

“It's our youth who are being subjected to skewed media reports and one-sided, socialist views in our schools and universities,” he said. “They are being targeted … told our country's Constitution is an old, dusty document.”

Marcus Kohan, acting director of the Pennsylvania Oath Keepers, a civic organization dedicated to defending the Constitution, said the right to bear arms is an unalienable right.

“We're active military, we're veterans … we're Americans,” Kohan said.