What does selective incorporation mean in the Supreme Court’s decision in McDonald v. City of Chicago?

In the Supreme Court’s decision in McDonald v. City of Chicago (2010), "selective incorporation" refers to the process by which the Court gradually applies specific protections of the Bill of Rights to state and local governments through the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.12

While the Bill of Rights originally restricted only the federal government, the Supreme Court has historically used the Fourteenth Amendment to hold states to the same constitutional standards for fundamental rights. In McDonald, the Court determined that the individual right to keep and bear arms for traditionally lawful purposes, such as self-defense, is fundamental to the American "scheme of ordered liberty and system of justice."12

Consequently, the Court ruled that the Second Amendment is incorporated—meaning it is applicable to the states—because it meets this standard of being essential to a fair and democratic system. This decision rejected the argument that the Second Amendment should be excluded simply because other civilized legal systems might not recognize an individual right to possess firearms.32