Every year there are around 40,000 deaths to gun violence in the U.S. alone. Just 144 days into 2019, 10,000 lives were lost to gun violence. At Sandy Hook Elementary School, a mentally ill man killed 20 children between the ages of six and seven years 6 adult staff members on Dec. 14th, 2012 using a legally purchased gun. He also had shot his mother in the head earlier that day. These are issues that can be easily resolved, with greater restrictions on gun carry laws, gun accessibility limited, as well as banning assault rifles and other highly dangerous weapons.
Gun carry laws should be greatly restricted. During a pro-gun rally in Richmond, Virginia on January 20th, 2020, thousands of people showed up carrying large automatic rifles, pistols and other guns capable of easily killing humans. This was organized by an extremist group known as the Virginia Citizens Defense League. As thousands of armed militias gathered throughout the city, nothing was done to contain the people. No weapons were seized, and no arrests were made as these heavily armed militias marched through Richmond, disrupting the life of all citizens there. The worst part of all of this, was that this was perfectly legal. It was fine for thousands of people carrying automatic weapons to march through a city and threaten violence. It is ridiculous that people can legally own and carry an automatic weapon in the name of, “self defense.” For self defense, all that is really needed is a .9mm handgun at most. It is well known that a round of .9mm bullets inside a handgun can effectively stop an armed intruder. An AR-15 is completely unnecessary for “self defense,” and realistically, its only purpose would be to kill large amounts of people in small amounts of time. The U.S. Military uses Mil Spec AR-15 rifles. No regular human should be able to legally carry that kind of weapon. People should be passing several background checks as well as extensive training before being able to own a gun. People who have been in jail for violent crimes such as rape and murder should not be able to own a gun. There should also be a waiting period before someone can purchase a gun, to prevent someone from making a rash ill judged decision.
Gun accessibility should also be greatly limited. Currently, handguns capable of killing human beings are accessible at Walmart Superstores in the southern U.S. Automatic rifles and other guns are easily purchasable online without a trace, on websites such as Facebook Marketplace and Craigslist. On Dec. 12th, 2012, only two days before the Sandy Hook Elementary shooting, a man whose identity will remain unknown used an automatic rifle he bought off of Craigslist to shoot and kill his wife and two co-workers in a Wisconsin spa, before killing himself. This clearly mentally unstable man bought a weapon of mass destruction off of Craigslist with no background check, and then went and murdered three innocent people with it. He bought the weapon legally. This is not ok. It should not be legal to buy a weapon like this whatsoever, especially without any background checks or mental health checks. Guns and ammunition should not be this easily accessible.
Many pro-gun activists argue that the U.S. 2nd Amendment states the Right to Bear Arms. “The type of guns that we have today didn't exist when the constitution was written. There wasn't the same accessibility to high-powered guns that we have today,” says Ashlon Lusk in “Legislatures must make Stricter Gun Laws in Response…” America is different now, and the constitution should reflect that.
The banning of assault rifles and other highly dangerous weapons is a subject that needs to be touched. 40% of all gun violence is caused by an automatic rifle. Gun injuries are the second most leading cause of death among U.S. children and teens, and the leading cause of death among high school students. This is horrible and needs to be stopped. On March 22nd, 2021, a 21 year old gunman killed 10 people in Boulder, Colorado. This happened only a week after a man shot and killed 8 people in a supermarket in Atlanta, Georgia. Both shooters were using automatic rifles that were legally purchased. These tragedies have caused President Joe Biden to propose gun control laws. “I don't need to wait another minute… to take common sense steps that will save lives in the future” President Biden said. Part of his plan is to tighten up background check laws. Everyone who wants to buy a gun needs to pass one of these checks. The issue is there are many loopholes with this. For instance, in many states it is legal to buy firearms from unlicensed sellers, online or at gun shows without needing a background check. Many democrats including the president are wanting to ban assault rifles, for good reason. These weapons can fire many bullets per second, and are specifically designed to kill. They are used in the military, and should not be available for purchase.
In conclusion, the constant stream of gun violence needs to be stopped. People are afraid to leave their homes in case of a shooting. People should be able to go to public places such as schools and pools without fearing for their lives. The US is supposed to be a place of safety for fleeing refugees, yet even in our own country thousands die each year to violence. Greater restrictions on gun carrying laws, as well as gun accessibility and the banning of assault rifles and other weapons would greatly decrease these deaths, and save thousands of lives.