Three Evidence-Based Strategies for Reducing Gun Violence

Eleven people were killed in a synagogue in the USA, in what appears to be a hate crime. The suspect used an assault rifle and several handguns. Soon after, Trump suggested the shooting had “little to do” with gun laws. Though mass shootings—such as the horrific shootings involving the Stoneman Douglas High School or Santa Fe High School—capture public’s attention, it should not be forgotten that gun violence occurs regularly; it kills an average of 100 people every single day.

The risk of gun violence is not the same everywhere. For example, firearm suicides are more likely to occur in rural areas, while firearm homicides often occur in urban settings. Over 38,000 people died as a result of gun violence in 2016. Nearly 500 of these were accidental; of the ones that were violence-related, 14,000 were categorized as homicide and 23,000 as suicide.

Other statistics from CDC show that homicide is the leading cause of death for 15- to 24-year-old black men in the USA. Over 3,100 of 3,840 deaths, or 94% of the total, were committed with a firearm. Among white males, aged 15-45 years, suicide is the second leading cause of death; firearms are used in over half of these suicides. These statistics on firearm deaths raise the question of how to prevent or reduce gun violence.

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