For years, the debate around gun control in America has sparked controversy as gun control advocates are always pitted against those who are fiercely protective of their right to bear arms. With gun violence being so present in American life, we wonder if gun control will ever happen or will it remain as an utopian thought in the mind of activists and the families of gun violence victims.
So far, more than 130 mass shootings have occurred across the United States in 2023, including the attack at a school in Nashville where three children and three adults were killed. According to the Gun Violence Archive, a nonprofit research database, gun violence has been on the rise in recent years, adding up to 600 mass shootings in the last three years, which translates to almost two a day, on average. While the US does not have a single definition for “mass shootings”, the Gun Violence Archive defines a mass shooting as an incident in which four or more people are injured or killed. Their figures include shootings that happen in homes and in public places.
According to the BBC, 48,830 people died from gun-related injuries in the US during 2021, (original data from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention – CDC). That’s nearly an 8% increase from 2020, which was a record-breaking year for firearm deaths. The US ratio of 120.5 firearms per 100 residents, up from 88 per 100 in 2011, far surpasses that of other countries around the world.
Funny thing is, a majority of Americans are in favor of gun control, 57% of them according to a survey from Gallup, where the majority of the surveyed citizens claimed they wanted “stricter gun laws”, versus 32% saying the should remain the same, and 10% claiming they should be “made less strict”. We’re not going to take a side in this controversial debate, but we are going to remember those who lost their lives in mass shootings this year, may they all rest in peace.