Gun Violence And Gun Control: The Influence On America

When thinking of America, many people recall the great things one loves about this country. People can explain the many ways to achieve lifelong dreams and goals. They are able to ramble about the vacation spots, business opportunities, and celebrities who reside in America. What many of the citizens do not like to speak about are the less cheerful aspects of their beloved home. The violent acts committed by what seems to be their own fellow citizens. One of the major issues in America is the outbreak of gun violence occurring on a daily basis. While people can attribute the rise of gun violence in America to many different factors, the leading causes are the lifting of the 1994 Public Safety and Recreational Firearm Use Protection Act, racism, and the major use of media.

First, the Public Safety and Recreational Firearm Use Protection Act was passed in 1994. (Congress.gov) The act was a subsection of the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994. (Web.) The purpose was to aid in lowering crime rates in America. This act made it more difficult for citizens to buy and own a semi-automatic assault weapon. If a person obtains a semi-automatic weapon from anyone other than a licensed dealer. Penalties would occur and both the seller and consumer would receive the penalty. (Web.) The act was lifted in 2004, which then made it easier for citizens and non-citizens alike to purchase semi-automatic assault weapons without being licensed to own the gun.

To add to this, the lifting of this ban not only caused easier access to buy and own an assault weapon, but it resulted in a rise in gun violence. After the ban was abolished, there were more mass shootings which resulted in fatalities. According to PubMed.gov mass shooting fatalities were 77% less likely to occur during the years the ban was in effect. (Web.) Assault weapons were responsible for 430 of 501 mass shooting deaths reported in the 44 fatal mass shootings. (Web.) Gun owners no longer must have a license to purchase or own a weapon of war. In some states people do not even have to take a gun safety training or class. (Web.) Citizens can purchase a gun as young as 18, which is before they can legally buy alcohol.

Secondly, another reason for the spike in gun violence in America is racism. Even though many people contend racism is no longer a prevalent issue in today’s society, it is still a massive issue. Racism plays a major part in gun violence. Gun owners use their hatred for people of other races to commit heinous crimes. Racism is not something people are born with, it is a learned concept. (Web.) People learn to be racist from their families, friends, and other aspects of life. Not every person means to be racist, a lot of younger children do not understand things they do or say are harmful because their parents do not teach them better. These people will either grow up and change their ways or they will continue to be mindlessly ignorant.

The effects of racism can be catastrophic. The children who choose to mindlessly follow their racist parents’ views grow up to become hateful and violent to minorities. They commit crimes that are racially motivated, such as school or mass shootings. They feel as though they are better than the races they are targeting, which causes them to feel they have the right to kill members of that race group. (Web.) Racism often finds its way into places and the hearts of people it should not be in. Many police officers are accused of shooting minorities when they are not committing a crime, and in many instances there is video evidence to back up the claims. In many of these cases the victim is most likely unarmed, and the officer just happens to be white. This leads many people to believe the shooting was racially based. (Web.)

Even though we typically think of it as a good source that keeps us all informed of what is happening in our world, the media is not always best for us. The media plays a major role in mass shootings. After every tragedy, people and news outlets take to social media to get all the details of the gruesome attack. They find out the name of the perpetrator, what they look like, what kind of weapon they used, and exactly how they planned and carried out the shooting. Media creates copycats by giving notoriety to the shooter. Not only does it give access the latest criminals, it also gives information on killers of the past. According to Thenextweb.com many shooters spend a major part of their time researching previous mass shooters before carrying out their own crimes. (Web.)

The media creates a new copy cat every time they put out a new article describing the last shooter. These copy cats look to social media, newspapers, and news broadcasts for their next inspiration. They know by following the plans of a previous offender, they will be more likely to have a successful crime. (Web.) The media allows them a place to share their ideas with other individuals who have similar intentions. Many of these mass shootings have more than one perpetrator who met each other through the internet. If we stopped giving these opportunities to these killers, we might be more triumphant in lowering the crime rate of gun violence.

In conclusion, gun violence is a part of America and sadly not going to go away without some major changes in our society. In order to stop it, we will have to take action to pass more gun laws. People will never completely agree on why it is so prevalent in our country, but we can all agree; the lifting of the 1994 Public Safety and Recreational Firearm Use Protection Act, racism, and the media are all factors in gun violence. It is one of those things so deeply rooted in our society which will take a long time to make major changes, but they can be made. First, people will have to do away with their racial tendencies. Second, the media will have to be better about what it allows on its platforms. It will not be easy, but it is possible.