America’s government is actually exceptional in one policy area: gun legislation. Or rather, the lack of it. We continue to set examples for the rest of the world in how to be unresponsive to the public’s needs. In other words, our government is setting examples of how to be a weak democracy.
We are bombarded nearly every day with news surrounding a new mass shooting or some other gun-related incident. The emotions surrounding potential remedies seem to always exclude hope, while the GOP consistently comes up with new excuses or explanations to justify their desire for the maintenance of our poor status quo.
Looking at the numbers so far for 2023 paints a dismal picture, to say the least. According to the Gun Violence Archive, almost 13,000 people have already died as a result of gun violence this year. Furthermore, the Brady Institute has concluded that around 321 people are shot a day with 111 of these cases resulting in death.
The mass shooting at an Alabama birthday party is the most recent addition to this country’s increasing list of mass shootings, and by the time this is published, it is highly likely that there will have already been another one. Mass shooting related gun-deaths, however, are only a drop in the bucket when compared to other forms of gun violence.
Around 54% of gun-related deaths are suicides. Our gun violence epidemic is perpetuating the consequences of our mental health crisis as well. That being said, it is imperative that we understand that our gun violence crisis is intersecting with numerous other crises and attempting to solve gun violence could lead to better outcomes in other areas as well.
Another important aspect of gun violence to keep in mind is that it affects different communities to differing degrees. In 2020, Black men were 12 times more likely to die at the hands of a gun than white men. The structural barriers preventing people of color from succeeding in this country must be understood by including gun violence as well.
I bring up these different points because they are seldom talked about in the mass media. We tend to hyper-fixate on mass shootings in this country, and for good reason. Yet this hyper-fixation takes away from the bigger picture to a certain extent. Gun violence contributes to the other crises that take place in this country, and looking at it from this perspective makes Congress’s inaction even more frustrating.
The first step that must be taken is federal legislation that requires universal-background checks before purchasing a firearm. The fact that you can go buy a gun in this country without any paperwork is absolutely mind-boggling. It is quite literally harder to vote in this country than it is to purchase a gun.
Despite the gridlock in our Congress, reorienting the public discussion on gun control could potentially lead to a positive outcome. Firstly, focusing on how gun violence is expanding into other issue areas might make gun legislation more appealing, even to conservatives. Focusing solely on mass shootings takes away from this argument, and makes gun-violence seem more sporadic than it really is.
Secondly, there are actually policies pertaining to gun violence that are more popular in this country than one might assume. Around 85% of Republicans believe we should prevent people with a mental illness from acquiring a gun and around 70% believe that private gun sales should be subject to background checks. Having politicians rhetorically focus on these statistics could aid in the passing of universal background checks.
A step Democrats could take, and this might be unpopular to many, is to moderate their rhetoric surrounding gun control. A lot of Democrats tend to focus on banning or severely restricting assault-style weapons, which I do think should happen, but the current political climate makes this goal impossible.
The current political climate also makes this stance extremely polarizing. Focusing on legislation that severely restricts gun ownership pushes moderates away from supporting gun reforms, and forces many to view any form of gun legislation as a “slippery slope.”
Compromise is an absolute necessity if we are to see any form of gun legislation. It is hard to see conservatives compromising on this issue, and what we have seen with their recent approach to abortion makes compromise look even less likely. That being said, Democrats should still pursue this compromise by conceding on certain goals themselves.
What this article really lists out in relation to gun control is that people’s lives matter more than partisanship. Compromises are a hallmark of a healthy democracy, and we will never be one again if issues affecting people’s lives are dealt with in the manner that we see today. It is imperative that Republicans compromise on their view of the second amendment, which is the only amendment in the Constitution that uses the term “well-regulated.” Yet, and quite unfortunately, we need to see Democrats make compromises as well.
