After the horrific tragedy that occurred in Orlando on Sunday, millions of Americans are left in awe, distress and mourning for those lost in the attack. With a total of 50 people dead and many more injured, this shooting has officially been named the deadliest mass shooting in American history.
The United States has more mass shootings than any other nation in the world. It is incredible that a nation founded on the basis of freedom is single-handedly placing itself under the tyranny of guns and their ability to enact mass destruction and devastation on its citizens.
The recent shootings are a result not only of terrorism coming from abroad, but terrorism coming from within the walls of our nation as well: the terrorism of guns. We constantly see politicians share their ideas on fighting terrorism and taking down ISIS once and for all, but most neglect to mention that these far too frequent mass shootings are happening with legally obtained guns, by legal citizens of the U.S.
Out of the 62 mass shootings that have occurred in the U.S. since 1982, 49 of these shootings were performed using legally obtained guns. While the argument used by many conservatives—that “guns don’t kill people, people kill people”—is true, what would these people do if they didn’t have access to guns? What person just casually has a need for a military grade assault rifle? Why are we still allowing ordinary people to purchase the kind of weapons that make mass murders that much easier? We must hinder gun accessibility in order to curb gun massacres.
The U.S. clearly has a lot to learn when it comes to gun control, considering we lead the world in mass shootings. The best way to predict what will happen if gun laws are tightened is to observe the ways these laws have worked in other nations around the world.
In the United Kingdom, members of the public can own sporting rifles and shotguns, but only with proper licensing. All handguns were effectively outlawed in 1966, after the Dunblane School Massacre, the UK’s first and only school shooting. In Great Britain, the police are not routinely armed and fatal shootings of police happen rarely, if at all. The fact that the UK has one of the lowest rates of gun homicide in the world is not exactly a coincidence.
These laws were put in place after ONE school shooting. How many more fatal shootings will it take America to do the same? The UK is only one example of nations with stricter gun control laws that have seen serious beneficial results. Nations such as Germany, Finland, Italy and France have all had similar results.
Many people argue that guns are needed for protection, but if there were no guns to protect against, this wouldn’t be an issue. Others argue that it is their civil right to own guns under the Second Amendment. However, this amendment originated to ensure protection against a tyrannical government, not against the LGBTQ+ community or the man down the street who is of a different race than you. Those who support these arguments are often the same people who are obsessed with fighting terrorism, as it poses such a dangerous threat to our country. What these people seem to forget is that far more people are dying from firearm incidents than they are from terrorism.
From 2001 to 2011, according to the U.S. Department of Justice and the Council of Foreign Affairs, 11,385 people died annually from firearm incidents. During this same time frame, an average of of 517 people died annually from terror-related incidents. Terrorism is certainly a problem that needs to be dealt with, but the casualties pale in comparison to those of firearm related deaths.
My question for the American people is this: Why do we only care about protecting ourselves from foreigners, when many incidents of mass devastation are coming from within our very own borders? Why are so few people noticing that it is far too often the unsuspected white male who has no issue walking into a school or movie theater and killing innocent people?
The National Rifle Association (NRA) is well known for their position that allowing U.S. citizens to carry concealed firearms would reduce crime and keep the nation safe. But how is adding more guns into the mix going to stop gun violence? Giving literally anyone the ability to fire a gun every time they feel threatened or scared is not going to save any more lives—it is only going to lose us more. This goal of safety is also only plausible if these people are well aware of how to use the gun in the first place. A firearm novice trying to defend himself has the possibility of not only killing himself, but innocent people as well.
While I respectfully understand that many people wish to have guns for hunting, or even for protection, I do question why they protest stricter control on these dangerous weapons. A detailed background check or limitation on the level of firearms available to the general public could save thousands of lives. Requiring a psychiatric evaluation or checking for a criminal record is going to help stop the mass murderers of the world from getting their hands on the guns that make these horrific crimes possible.
Omar Mateen, the man behind the recent Orlando shooting, was an American-born citizen who pledged allegiance to ISIS during the shooting. His ex-wife claims that he was unstable and that he beat her during their marriage. Many of his friends and co-workers say he had problems with rage. He had even been interviewed by the FBI in 2013 for possible terror relations. Despite these major red flags, this man was easily able to legally obtain a 9 mm handgun and an AR-15 rifle and brutally murder 49 innocent people.
I realize that these people have other ways of getting weapons. They could steal them or obtain them illegally through a black market deal, but shouldn’t we at least be trying to make it difficult for them? Fewer guns in circulation means fewer guns to be illegally obtained. In my ideal world, all guns would be outlawed from the U.S. outside of military purposes. Since this isn’t going to happen any time soon, and probably never will, it can’t hurt to have fewer guns in circulation and make it more difficult for criminals to walk into any store and easily purchase a gun. I understand that people might want a hand gun for protection or a hunting rifle for sport, but no one outside of the military or mass murderers needs an AK-57 or any other type of firearm that deadly.
I recognize that not every person with a gun is going to engage in mass murder. Many people are well-trained to use guns responsibly and safely, but we need this strict control for those who are not. I’m not saying that you can’t have guns, and I’m not saying that you are wrong to want guns. What I am saying is that it is wrong to let people be irresponsible with their guns and wrong to allow this type of devastating murder to keep happening.
America deserves better than another mass shooting. If we respect ourselves as a nation, it shouldn’t be so easy for them to occur.