Tammy Tellez 1

Gun violence and the Effect on people

Gun Control

Tammy Tellez

AP Literature

Mr. Janosch

11/30/18
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Gun violence and thee effect on people

Each year death rates go up, there are many causes of death and one of them are

shootings.​ Gun violence has spun out of control and approximately 96 people in America are

killed everyday while other hundreds are injured due to shots. ​Throughout the years from 2016

up to 2018 the number of shootings have gone up but why is that? What laws are changing?

What is our president doing about it? Statistically the 2nd most leading cause of death between

children and teens is firearms. Women are also affected by firearms due to the fact that about

50 women each month are shot to death by an intimate partner. Gun violence goes beyond the

number of people being killed, it goes as far as the person that had control over that gun, and as

far as the damage caused to those around. The person that committed the crime faces jail time

and people that have witnessed a shooting or have known someone that died due to a shooting

can hurt their mental state.

The requirements for possessing a gun in the U.S is passing a background check. For

each state the laws vary but you mainly have to pass the background check and there is even

one third of americans that buy a gun without a background check. In some states you can buy

a rifle before even buying beer. Is passing a background check enough? If there is nothing on

your record then running a background check takes only 30 seconds and you can buy a gun.

There have been people that shouldn’t have even passed a background check because of their

past but have still passed. Some of these people were involved in the church massacre (killed 9

people in a black church) and the Virginia Tech rampage (killed 32 people). These examples

have shown that there are ways getting around the background check so that you get approved.
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If we want to have the number of mass shootings decreased stronger background checks need

to be done and there should be stronger rules on who should be allowed to own a gun. It’s

typical that shooters have carried more than one firearm. So they have been able to purchase a

firearm more than once.

The 14th amendment states ​“No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the

privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of

life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction

the equal protection of the laws.” ​Gun violence has shown a violation of the 14th amendment. It

is a violation to the 14th amendment because it states how no state should take aways anyone’s

life, liberty, or property and when a gun is put into someone’s hand that it shouldn’t be in, it

violates the amendment. There have been court cases relating to gun violence; for example,

Voisine v. United States which happened in the year 2016. The case was opened when two

men, Stephen Voisine and William Armstrong had pleaded guilty to domestic violence abuse,

then years later they had bought a firearm. ​“​Both argued that the weapons ban should

not apply to them because their misdemeanor cases were for "reckless conduct"

rather than intentional abuse.​”​(Carrie Johnson)​ Their appeal got rejected so they decided

to take it to the supreme court and all it did was to enforce the fact that people that have been in

abusers should not own a gun. But they should’ve had a strong background check to begin with

that didn’t allow them to buy a gun to begin with.

There was another argument going on whether guns should be brought into school. There

have been multiple school shootings; for example, Sandy Hook Elementary School (28 people

died in total), Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School (17 people died), and Columbine High
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School (13 died and 24 injured). These are some that have passed through the years. There was

a point where people were saying that guns should be allowed to be carried by teachers in

school for protection. The NRA (National Rifle Association) was encouraging and pushing for

the possibility to arm teachers. There are many reasons why this wouldn’t be a good idea. For

example, it would be easier for students to have access to a gun. But there is also research

showing that when parents have guns the kids get their hands on the firearms without their

parents knowing it. So what is the best way to handle this?

Besides gun violence affecting the people that lost their life due to a gun it also affects a

person’s health. If someone witnessed a mass shooting or anything like that it can take over

their life. It has been statistically found that about 44 percent of adults have reported of

knowing someone who has been shot and 25 percent have said they were scared and felt

threatened of someone that owned a gun. A high number has been that about 3 million children

witness gun violence every year. Children should not have to witness that, especially since it

can later on have negative outcomes in their future. For example, some children might grow up

thinking that it’s okay to own a gun and some might even have ptsd (Post traumatic stress

disorder). The point is that all around it doesn’t just affect one or two people it can affect many

more.

What is the NRA doing about this? The NRA is doing what they can and doing all the

research they can possibly do to figure out a solution and have stronger gun control laws. They

spend a great amount of money on research but some people aren’t too pleased with the results.

People feel as if they aren’t being heard and they feel like the NRA isn’t doing anything. Not

only do adults feel like this but so do teens. With so many school shootings that have happened
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students of course are upset and want to do something about it. For example, Emma Gonzalez

is a vocal activist from the parkland shooting. She has been voicing her opinion and not only to

the people but to the NRA also. But what is our president doing? ​The president has said that he

wants to strengthen background checks, banning bump stocks, wanting to arm teachers, raising

the age limit to 21, and wants to check the persons mental health before letting them buy a

firearm.​ These are things that the president wants to do in order to decrease shootings. But

there hasn’t been a set plan or any new laws on gun control.

Gun violence has affected many people and will continue to affect the community if

something isn’t done. A possible solution to this problem is that the NRA start taking action

and come up with a solid plan that can have a good outcome. The NRA and the president have

to come up with a plan that is safe for everyone. Definitely not arming teachers because that

will only make the situation worse. People should have strong background checks, get checked

for any mental illness, their behavior should be supervised for a while, and the age limit should

definitely go up. These laws should be set and all states should have the same laws so that way

it’s not easier to obtain a firearm in one state and harder in the other, all states should be equal.

A movement has to be done quickly before another mass shooting happens. The more people

that fight together and loudly the more people would get heard. If the president and the NRA

aren’t doing anything then the people have the right to voice their opinion and should have the

right to be heard.
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Work Cited

Gould, Melia Robinson Skye. “There Have Been 307 Mass Shootings in the US so Far in 2018 -

Here's the Full List.” ​Business Insider,​ Business Insider, 8 Nov. 2018,

www.businessinsider.com/how-many-mass-shootings-in-america-this-year-2018-2​.

“Gun Violence in America.” ​EverytownResearch.org​, 9 Oct. 2018,

everytownresearch.org/gun-violence-america/.

Carlsen, Audrey, and Sahil Chinoy. “How to Buy a Gun in 15 Countries.” ​The New York Times,​

The New York Times, 2 Mar. 2018,

www.nytimes.com/interactive/2018/03/02/world/international-gun-laws.html​.

https://www.ranker.com/list/supreme-court-cases-about-guns/katherine-ripley

Kirby, Jen. “Parkland Activists Respond to Santa Fe School Shooting: ‘You Didn't Deserve

This.’” ​Vox.com,​ Vox Media, 19 May 2018,

www.vox.com/2018/5/18/17370528/santa-fe-school-shooting-parkland-activists​.

Berenson, Tessa. “Donald Trump Shifts Stances on Five Gun Control Ideas.” ​Time​, Time, 12

Mar. 2018, time.com/5195469/donald-trump-gun-control-white-house/.