No, if you read the antifederalist papers, you will find the text from which the bill of rights originated which more clearly show that it is an individual right.
> 7. That the people have a right to bear arms for the defence of themselves and their own state, or the United States, or for the purpose of killing game; and no law shall be passed for disarming the people of any of them, unless for crimes committed, or real danger of public injury from individuals;...
* The Address and Reasons of Dissent of the Minority of the Convention of Pennsylvania to their Constituents (December 18,1787)
Both the first and forth amendments also use the wording "the people" to refer to an individual right.
Moreover, the militia is and was intended to be every able bodied male.
> The militia of the United States consists of all able-bodied males at least 17 years of age and, except as provided in section 313 of title 32, under 45 years of age who are, or who have made a declaration of intention to become, citizens of the United States and of female citizens of the United States who are members of the National Guard.
> (b) The classes of the militia are—
> (1) the organized militia, which consists of the National Guard and the Naval Militia; and
> (2) the unorganized militia, which consists of the members of the militia who are not members of the National Guard or the Naval Militia.
There's a reason the anti-federalist papers are not part of our legal and cultural canon: the anti-federalists lost. Their sole victory (a good one!) in our Federal government is the Bill of Rights, and even that was Pyrrhic in nature.
> Both the first and forth amendments also use the wording "the people" to refer to an individual right.
That's because "people" is the plural of "person." "Militia," on the other hand, is not the plural of "person." It's a particular kind of institution, one that the 2A recognizes must be well-regulated. That's why 10 USC isn't the "gotcha" that armchair scholars think it is: the general body of the population is the opposite of a well-regulated militia, even if they are perfectly eligible for service in either a militia or the armed forces.
And note: I'm not claiming that "well-regulated" means that the framers meant "full of regulation." The framers were clasically educated: their understanding of the world "regulate" is the non-personal version of "moderation," meaning something closer to "striking a balance." There is nothing particularly balanced about either a complete ban on arms (you will note that no liberal democracy on Earth actually does this) or our current clown show of private militias showing up to protests strapped with assault rifles.
Sure they lost, but we can look to their writings for aid in our understanding of the meaning. I'm not saying that the quote is binding in itself.
> That's because "people" is the plural of "person." "Militia," on the other hand, is not the plural of "person."
This is a weird take. There is no indication or grammatical reason that "people" and "militia" are convertible.
If you read the various state versions of the 2A many are more clear than the federal that it applies to individuals. There is a state court case
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nunn_v._Georgia
Also the infamous Dread Scott decision mentions it:
> It would give to persons of the negro race, who were recognised as citizens in any one State of the Union, the right to enter every other State whenever they pleased, singly or in companies, without pass or passport, and without obstruction, to sojourn there as long as they pleased, to go where they pleased at every hour of the day or night without molestation, unless they committed some violation of law for which a white man would be punished; and it would give them the full liberty of speech in public and in private upon all subjects upon which its own citizens might speak; to hold public meetings upon political affairs, and to keep and carry arms wherever they went.
10 USC was not supposed to be a gotcha. It is showing that just as at the time of the founding, all citizens were expected to keep and bear arms, and thus also know how to use them so still does federal law reflect that.
Quick note: people are not protesting with "assault rifles" because one is defined as select fire and they are very expensive to acquire. Although I do wish that this was not the case.
> 7. That the people have a right to bear arms for the defence of themselves and their own state, or the United States, or for the purpose of killing game; and no law shall be passed for disarming the people of any of them, unless for crimes committed, or real danger of public injury from individuals;...
* The Address and Reasons of Dissent of the Minority of the Convention of Pennsylvania to their Constituents (December 18,1787)
Both the first and forth amendments also use the wording "the people" to refer to an individual right.
Moreover, the militia is and was intended to be every able bodied male.
> The militia of the United States consists of all able-bodied males at least 17 years of age and, except as provided in section 313 of title 32, under 45 years of age who are, or who have made a declaration of intention to become, citizens of the United States and of female citizens of the United States who are members of the National Guard.
> (b) The classes of the militia are—
> (1) the organized militia, which consists of the National Guard and the Naval Militia; and
> (2) the unorganized militia, which consists of the members of the militia who are not members of the National Guard or the Naval Militia.
https://uscode.house.gov/view.xhtml?path=%2Fprelim%40title10...