Gun Violence in America
The United States has the highest rate of gun violence in the world. No matter how you measure gun violence, by gun deaths, gun death rate per capita, homicides, suicides, youth and teen deaths, domestic violence deaths or non-white deaths by guns, the US leads the world by a very large margin. The numbers are overwhelming.
It is no coincidence that the US also leads the world in guns owned by civilians by a very large margin. Almost half of the world's guns are owned by Americans who make up just 4% of the world's population. And the problem is getting worse. Gun violence and gun purchases have both surged during 2020 to 2022 to all-time highs.
We envision a better future. One free from gun violence. Our mission is to shine a light on gun violence and work towards a future free from gun violence.
Gun Deaths in America
Almost 45,000 Americans died from gun violence last year. Over 120 Americans die every day.
Highest Gun Violence in the World
The US has the highest gun violence in the world, 11 times the gun death rate of 28 comparable countries combined.
US has Half of the World's Guns
With only 4% of the world's population, the US has 46% of the world's guns.
US Gun Sales Increase Dramatically
More guns were sold in the US in 2020 than any year in US history by a wide margin.
More Guns = More Gun Violence
States with more guns have more gun violence. Countries with more guns have more gun violence.
US Mass Shootings Happen Daily
Almost 700 mass shootings happened last year in the US. Almost two per day.
Gun Deaths in America
Almost 45,000 Americans were killed by gun violence last year. That's over 120 gun deaths per day, or one gun death every 11 minutes. 55% of gun deaths are suicides. 45% are homicides or accidental deaths. The number of US gun deaths has risen 29% from five years ago. The problem is getting worse.
Gun Violence in America
Every year, over 80,000 Americans are killed or injured by gun violence. The majority, about 45.000 per year are killed. Another 40,000 are injured. 2021 was the most violent year in US history. The carnage includes thousands of youths under the age of 18 that are killed or injured from gun violence. Many are under the age of 11.
America has the World's Highest Rate of Gun Deaths
The US has the world's highest gun death rate of eleven gun deaths per 100,000 people per year. This is by far the highest gun death rate of any comparable country in the world, and is four times higher than the second highest country of Switzerland.
US Gun Violence Comparison
The amount of gun violence in the US paints a very disturbing picture, especially when compared to other countries. Gun violence spares no one, striking down men, women, children, teens, whites and non-whites. And gun violence is orders of magnitude higher in the US across all demographics than other comparable countries.
World's Highest Rate of Gun Homicides
The gun homicide rate in the US is drastically higher than every other comparable country. Chile is second, but is still less than half of the US gun homicide rate. The US gun homicide rate is 25 times higher than other comparable countries combined.
More Guns than Americans
The US has by far the most guns of any country in the world, more guns than people living in America. As of 2022, the US has about 340M people living in the country, but it has over 410M guns in the country. More than one gun per person. No other country comes even close to this many guns or this many guns per person.
Guns in America Dwarfs other Countries
Americans have by far more guns, and more guns per person compared to any other country in the world. No matter how you measure it, total guns, or guns per person, America is far ahead of the rest of the world. Although America has only 4% of the world's population, it has 46% of the world's guns.
US Gun Sales Spike during 2020 - 2022
Gun sales in the US increased dramatically from 2020 - 2022 due to the COVID-19 pandemic and political protests. Of the highest 10 monthly gun sales numbers in US history, 8 of the top 10 months occurred in 2020 or 2021. More guns were purchased in the US between 2020 - 2022 than at any other time in our nation's history by far.
More Guns = More Violence
There is little doubt that more guns result in more gun violence. Regions with higher gun ownership are regions with higher gun violence. Conversely, regions with lower gun ownership are regions with lower gun violence. The result is the same whether you look at regions within the US by state, or globally by country, or whether you measure the amount of guns as guns per person, or % of population who own a gun. More guns results in more gun violence.
Within the US, Alaska has the highest rate of gun deaths of 22 per 100,000 people per year. The top ten US states with the highest gun ownership show a pretty good correlation with the highest gun violence states. Of the nine states with the highest gun death rates, seven of them are also in the top ten states for gun ownership. Conversely, of the eleven states with the lowest gun death rates, seven of them are also in the bottom ten states for gun ownership.
Massachusetts has the lowest level of gun violence for any US state, but that does not make it "safe." Its gun death rate of 3.3 per 100,000 people per year is higher than every other comparable country to the US. Switzerland comes closest at 2.8 gun deaths per 100,000 people per year.
More Guns Result in More Violence
US states with a higher level of gun ownership have a higher level of gun violence compared to states with low levels of gun violence. Whether you are measure total gun violence, homicides or suicides, more guns results in more violence.
More Guns = More Violence Globally
The same correlation of more guns result in more gun violence applies globally as well. The US leads the world in guns per capita at 1.2 guns per person. And it leads the world in highest rate of gun deaths at 11 per 100,000 people. In examining other countries, a high guns per capita rate does correspond to a high rate of gun deaths. Of the top five countries with the highest number of guns per capita (excluding the US), three of them are in the top five in gun death rates. And the five lowest countries in guns per capita directly correspond to the five lowest gun death rates. Chile is an outlier as it has a mid-level of guns per capita, but is top give in gun death rate.
Mass Shootings in America
Mass shootings surged in 2021 to almost 700 during the year. Mass shootings get a tremendous amount of attention due to their horrific nature and often result in protests around the country for sensible gun laws. But as awful as mass shootings are, they represent about only about 1% of the total gun deaths in the US every year. And they happen much more frequently than most realize, with over one mass shooting per day in 2020 and 2021 (defined by Gun Violence Archive as 4 or more victims not including the shooter). Gun violence in America is so widespread, that eliminating all mass shootings, although a highly worthy cause, would not reduce gun violence significantly.
US Mass Shootings on the Rise
Mass shootings in the US have occurred with increasing frequency, in all regions of the country. 2021 set a new record for the most mass shootings in US history. 2022 recorded the second highest number of mass shootings.
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