I wrote this paper about guns. I picked the topic of guns because it has been an enduring issue we face every year. I hope you can learn something from my paper.
Kingsley Aborampah
Mr. Serhiy Metenko
Metropolis – Writing Section – CCNY – FIQWS
10 October 2022
Guns
Guns are an enduring popular topic of late. Over the past month and previous years there have been a huge number of shootings in the United States, such as this year’s school shooting, On May 24, 2022. In Uvalde, Texas, Robb Elementary school. 18-year-old Salvador Ramos opened fire killing 19 children and 2 teachers, wounding 15 more children and a police officer. Before the incident, he had shot and wounded his grandmother. The shooting marked the 27th school shooting this year, 2022. This drew a flood of comments from the families of the victims, civilians, and the media. Many comments on what should have happened, and what needs to be done in the future to prevent such incidents from happening again. Although the second amendment of the United States Constitution protects and keeps Americans’ right to bear arms with the expectation of individuals with severe mental health. However this bill was passed in 1791, but times have changed, a gun control Act In (1968) was issued which prohibited firearms possession for drug abusers, felons, undocumented immigrants, and persons who had been dishonorably discharged from the military, if subject to a restraining order, had renounced their US citizenship, or had been convicted of a domestic violence misdemeanor. If this is a law then how do young adults, felons, and other illegal entities obtain a gun? Well, the answer is simple, it is fairly easy to obtain and own weapons in most states. According to Statista (November 2021) 300 million united states, citizens own firearms. However, this number does not account for illegal guns and ghost guns in circulation. Nonetheless, There are advantages and disadvantages of owning a gun, some advantages include sports. Guns can be used for sports, it is a competitive and recreational activity which involve proficiency test of accuracy, precision, and speed in shooting. Guns can be used in situations to protect your family and property. According to a report on “Victimization During Household Burglary”, 27.6% of burglaries occurred while people were at home, and 7.2% of these burglaries resulted in injury or even worse death. 40% of burglaries involve weapons. Although guns can be used for good, it is a like a double-edged sword, the same gun used to protect your family and property can be used to commit suicide, murder, homicides, and more. According to “CDC” firearms caused 47,286 homicide and suicide deaths in 2021, after 43,675 in 2020.
So should Gun Rights be denied? If gun rights should be denied, countless of people will be upset and this will lead to protests all around the country and there is no guarantee it will be peaceful. Virginia’s pro-gun rally back in 2020 at the capitol is a prime example of how people will react even though the protest was peaceful is not certain that other protests will be. Guns are a serious responsibility. And gun owners must follow federal and state laws thoroughly because guns in the wrong hands are a danger to society, that’s why we repeatedly see questions related to them. According to Reader digest (2021): 45,034 Americas lost their lives due to gun violence in 2021. Although there are numerous gun laws and restrictions, why are there vast numbers of fatalities every year?
Gun violence reduction is a huge task for the federal government and the states because a lot of time and effort goes into simply passing a law, ⅔ majority of congress must agree or the president must sign the bill for it to be a law. In this hectic political system with republicans and democrats who have different points of view on the nation’s matters, it makes it difficult to agree on terms. According to a study from Mother Jones, 70 mass shootings in the United States, from more than 3 decades ago, showed 75 percent of the incidents they investigated, the gun that took the life was obtained legally. This means gun laws are not working as well as they are supposed to. To prevent this many states such as California, Delaware and New York have passed new laws to help regulate untraceable ghost guns and strengthen background check systems. Ghost guns are untraceable guns that are mostly made at home with 3d printers and other materials to which the general public has access to. The new background check systems will include juvenal records which will be used to investigate people between the ages of 18 and 21 willing to buy a gun. In June of 2022, President Biden signed the new gun safety law in decades. However, the law failed to ban any weapons but it funded programs such as school safety and state crisis intervention programs. After signing the law President Biden said “While this bill doesn’t do everything I want, it does include actions I’ve long called for that are going to save lives”. These are steps our country is taking to improve and control gun violence.
In Conclusion, Guns is not an easy topic to discuss, due to their multipurpose, many people own a gun for protection and recreational use such as collection and sports but the majority use guns for the criminal purpose which develops the mindset of guns are bad for every way. individuals are not using guns responsibly, which is why there have been a lot of mass shootings and a growing number of casualties every year. However, the federal government and States need to change several things to reduce gun violence. Whatever the future of guns in the United States is, we must hope that it is brighter than the current situation. People need to remember that guns have been in our history since their invention in 1364, appearing in every major conflict in the world, from world wars to civil wars. People have learned about the devastating power of guns. But today we live in peace and people should be careful about how they use guns and promote the safety of others to end this long history of gun violence.
CITATION
- “Right to Bear Arms.” Gale Opposing Viewpoints Online Collection, Gale, 2022. Gale In Context: Opposing Viewpoints, link.gale.com/apps/doc/PC3010999251/OVIC?u=cuny_ccny&sid=bookmark-OVIC&xid=8c3197b7. Accessed 6 Oct. 2022.
- Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence. “Gun Licensing and Registration Would Reduce Crime.” Guns and Crime, edited by James D. Torr, Greenhaven Press, 2004. At Issue. Gale In Context: Opposing Viewpoints, link.gale.com/apps/doc/EJ3010015223/OVIC?u=cuny_ccny&sid=bookmark-OVIC&xid=1e0ef54a. Accessed 6 Oct. 2022. Originally published as “Licensing and Registration: Questions and Answers and Private Sales: Closing a Loophole—Background Checks on All Handgun Sales,” 2002. \
- Kepple, Benjamin. “Enforcing Current Gun Laws Will Reduce Gun Violence.” How Can Gun Violence Be Reduced?, edited by Laura K. Egendorf, Greenhaven Press, 2002. At Issue. Gale In Context: Opposing Viewpoints,
link.gale.com/apps/doc/EJ3010186214/OVIC?u=cuny_ccny&sid=bookmark-OVIC&xid=7113fd6b. Accessed 6 Oct. 2022.
Originally published as “Taking Aim at the Control Freaks: Gun Crazy,” Heterodoxy, 2000.
- Schlafly, Phyllis. “Gun Control Will Not Reduce Gun Violence.” How Can Gun Violence Be Reduced?, edited by Laura K. Egendorf, Greenhaven Press, 2002. At Issue. Gale In Context: Opposing Viewpoints,
link.gale.com/apps/doc/EJ3010186202/OVIC?u=cuny_ccny&sid=bookmark-OVIC&xid=5cb04ede.
Accessed 6 Oct. 2022. Originally published as “The Media Campaign Against Gun Ownership,” Phyllis Schlafly Report, June 2000.
- The campaign, Brady. “Restricting Gun Ownership Protects Society and Reduces Crime.” Gun Control, edited by Tami Roleff, Greenhaven Press, 2007. Opposing Viewpoints. Gale In Context: Opposing Viewpoints,
link.gale.com/apps/doc/EJ3010140302/OVIC?u=cuny_ccny&sid=bookmark-OVIC&xid=2c8a04ab. Accessed 6 Oct. 2022. Originally published as “Gun Laws Work, Loopholes Don’t,” www.bradycampaign.org.
