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Gun violence is a modern-day global human rights issue rampant in the United States of America. The issue threatens the fundamental human right – the right to live.
Acts of gun violence include domestic violence, suicide, and intentional homicide. Apart from these, police brutality, robbery, assault, and accidental firefighter deaths are also included in weapon violence.
One of the top reasons for this is the easy accessibility of firearms. The Pew Research Center Survey states 4 in 10 American adults possess guns. Furthermore, many studies have found a positive correlation between gun ownership and gun-related homicides and suicides.
GunPolicy.org estimates that civilians control 75 percent of the world’s 875 million guns. Nearly half of these guns (48%) are owned by Americans, the highest gun ownership rate in the world.
Additionally, numerous surveys state that weapon violence in the United States is the highest of all highly developed nations and it ranks 11th in the world.
Despite the surge in gun violence cases and the seriousness of the issue, the number of Americans supporting stricter gun laws has fluctuated in recent years.
As per the Pew Research Center survey (April 2021), approximately half of American citizens (53%) support stricter policies. This decreased from September 2019, when 60% favored stricter curbs.
The report further states that only 24% of adults view gun violence as a moderately big problem. So, going by these reports and statistics, one can conclude that there are polarizing views on gun violence and gun control regulations.
The most common grounds for the increase in violence can be attributed to:
lenient restrictions, easy access to guns, and the absence of strict laws.
Despite these polarising views, no one can discount that mass shootings, homicides, and other crimes are committed.
Thus, governments must pass strict laws and bring new policies that help curb this menace. Apart from laws and policies, the common public must be educated about these crimes. One law often discussed is the Gun control law which aims to reduce violence in the country.
With proper reforms and amendments, this law can bring a positive change. However, much depends on the policymakers and the government tackling the issue.
