Anywhere in the world, a person can become angry and try to harm others, but only in the United States do people with such regularity become witnesses and victims of mass shootings. In the United States, gun violence kills one person every 15 minutes (Cook and Goss 46). Lessons must be learned from these tragedies so that there are fewer of them in the future. One possible approach to solving the problem is a public health strategy. The purpose of this paper is to discuss gun violence in America and propose measures to address it within a public health approach.
Under the general American laws that apply to all citizens of the country, the average American has the right to own:
- short-barreled (pistols, revolvers) weapons,
- smooth-bore (hunting rifles, semi-automatic and automatic carbines, shotguns),
- automatic weapons (automatic, assault rifles, and machine guns),
- grenade launchers, artillery pieces,
- tanks and other armored vehicles,
- helicopters and airplanes.
Large-caliber guns and some types of ammunition are prohibited – armor-piercing, cumulative, and inhuman cartridges. It is necessary to dismantle rocket weapons on aircraft – cannon weapons are permissible (surprisingly, no one thought to shoot a school or the hated office from air cannons). A separate ban applies to the purchase, manufacture, and sale of non-metallic weapons that metal detectors cannot detect.
The first step is to understand the magnitude of the problem in America. Residents of the United States have over 300 million firearms, approximately one for every citizen of the country (Ludwig 12098). They also have the highest death rates from gun violence. Firearms advocates often argue that cars kill as many people as guns, but no one forbids them. However, this is because cars are the model for a public health approach.
Liberal opposition to firearms is often ineffective and, at times, counterproductive. Liberals sometimes emphasize gun control, thereby deterring gun owners and driving up sales. A better approach is choosing a format for the safe use of weapons or reducing gun violence and using safety requirements for driving as a model (Gabor 81). These are ongoing and targeted measures to make products safer and restrict access to people who are more likely to use them inappropriately.
What would a public health approach to guns look like when modeled on cars? It will include background checks, secure storage, and the revocation of privileges granted to firearms companies. In addition, it is worth introducing a protective order, that is, depriving the rights of possession of weapons of persons who have received a protective order in connection with domestic violence. It would be helpful to tighten laws on the purchase of firearms, impose restrictions on the number of weapons purchased, prohibit the purchase of firearms by people under the age of 21, and research the possibilities of “smart” weapons that fire only after identification of a fingerprint or entering a PIN code, or while close to a special bracelet. In addition, it is necessary to find out whether the weapons buyback program, often run by police departments, is cost-effective and helps reduce violence.
One major problem is that liberal laws all too often make it easier for not only the “good guys” to acquire weapons but also for the “bad guys.” There is ample evidence that, in general, more weapons and softer laws regarding their use lead to more brutal deaths and injuries. It must be remembered that mass shootings are not the main cause of death. Much more often, it happens that one friend shoots another, a husband kills his wife, or, in the most common case, a man kills himself.
One lesson in weapons research is that people often focus only on the firearm itself, when it might be more productive to focus on those who gain access to them. A car or pistol is usually safe in the hands of a 45-year-old woman with no criminal record. Still, it can be dangerous when in the hands of a 19-year-old criminal with a string of alcohol-related offenses or a protection order due to domestic violence incidents.
Sometimes it seems that it is impossible to make progress in the fight against armed violence. However, the question is not whether the state will restrict firearms but where the border will pass and what specific weapons will be subject to restrictions. The incentive for change will be public support, such as support for background checks preceding arms sales.
Undoubtedly, making America a safer place will be difficult: there are no perfect solutions. Whatever changes are introduced, it will be a long, unpredictable, complex process. However, the automobile case remains a reminder that Americans can get rid of a big problem with a public health approach. Just as improvements in driving safety have greatly helped people in their lives, smart, politically justified health measures could, over time, reduce American gun deaths by one-third. People should take action and save lives as soon as possible.
Works Cited
Cook, Philip, and Goss, Kristin. The Gun Debate: What Everyone Needs to Know. Oxford University Press, 2020.
Gabor, Thomas. Confronting Gun Violence in America. Springer International Publishing, 2018.
Ludwig, Jens. “Reducing Gun Violence in America.” PNAS, vol. 114, no. 46, 2017, pp. 12097-12099.