The rates of gun-related deaths, mass shootings, and other firearm crimes is alarmingly high in the United States. This is due to one main reason: the ease with which one can access a firearm in the US. The Second Amendment to the American constitution protects the right of American citizens to keep and bear arms. This means that with the exception of convicted felons and people who have been admitted to a mental facility involuntarily, anyone in the country can access lethal weaponry.
To put this into context, for the year of 2017, which is the most recent year for which accurate data is available, the USA has the most guns per capita. For every 100 civilians in the US, there are 120.5 guns. The population of the US is 326,474,000. The Falkland Islands have the second highest guns per capita, with 62.1 guns per 100 people; however, the population of the Falkland islands is just 3000. The third highest guns per capita is in Yemen, with 52.8 guns per 100 people and a population of 28,120,000. To put this into further context, India and China, both of which have populations nearing 1.4 billion people, have 5.3 and 3.6 guns per 100 people respectively. From this data, it is clear that the sheer number of guns in the United States is disproportionately high. Another statistic which supports this is the percentage of households in the US with a firearm. As of 2017, 42% of households in the country have some kind of firearm.
Now that we have an idea about the number of firearms in civilian possession in the country, let's take a look at the effect these guns have on the population. In 2021 alone (as of may 7) there have already been 178 mass shootings with firearm related deaths. In 2020, there were 615 mass shootings. 2019 had 434 and 2018 had 323. In these last four years alone, these mass shootings have resulted in around 7500 victims of firearm related violence. Astonishingly this number is only for mass shootings, the total firearm related deaths for the year of 2019 (the most recent year with accurate data available) was 39,707. To put this into global context, India has an average firearm related death rate of around 4000 per year, England has an average of 155 and Mexico has an average of 9745. Population is not the main factor which contributes to the large firearm related death rate in America. This is clear because India has a death rate which is around 1/10th that of America with four times the population. So it is clear that the easy availability of guns to the general public is one of the main reasons why the death rate is so high.
Now, let's take a look at some of the individual American states with the highest gun related deaths. In 2019, Texas had the highest number of gun related deaths with 3683. Unsurprisingly, Texas has virtually no restrictions on the access to guns in the state. There is no need for a permit to purchase a gun. Firearms do not need to be registered and there is no limit on magazine capacity and there is no need for a permit to carry a firearm openly or concealed. Meaning the only real prerequisite is to be 18 years of age.
The state with the second highest deaths is California, with a count of 2945 firearm related deaths in 2019. This state has stricter gun control laws than Texas. A partial permit is required to purchase firearms and they must be registered. There is even a limit on the magazine capacity and a license is necessary for concealed carrying of firearms.
The state with the third highest deaths is Florida, with 2872 deaths in 2019. As expected, Florida has even stricter gun control laws. The minimum age to purchase a firearm to transfer a firearm in Florida is 21. There is even a mandatory waiting period of 3 days before one can purchase a firearm, however they do not have to be registered. The police can get judicial approval to confiscate the weapons of a person deemed a danger to themselves or others under the red flag law. A permit is required for concealed carrying of weapons, however there is no restriction on magazine size.
To conclude, the number of guns with the public in the USA is extremely high when compared to other countries. This is due to the fact that it is extremely easy to get a gun in the country. This easy access to firearms leads to a very large number of firearm related deaths in the country. We have also seen that the easier it is to get guns in a state, the more deaths due to gun violence that state has. Essentially, gun violence is prevalent in the United States and if the country has any interest in reducing the number of lives lost, then it will have to introduce stricter laws on gun control like many other countries have done in the past. That being said, the power of states to make gun laws on their own will undoubtedly be a big factor in any new restrictions that are introduced.
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