While civilians ponder their rights as individuals to own guns, it has created a controversy endangering many. Though Americans need to protect their rights, people also need to see the bigger picture. Americans are just sitting back while thousands are getting killed by guns. Innocent lives are at stake and being tested while each day passes. America needs to have stricter gun laws because of the increase in mass shootings, the increase in school shootings and the disparity of safety laws between the United States and other countries.
America is home to the most mass shootings than any other country (Fox). Americans have been experiencing mass shootings for the past 40 years (Background of the Issue). Also school shootings have risen in the past 20 years (Background of the Issue). Studies show that “the higher the gun ownership rate, the more a country is susceptible to experiencing mass shooting incidents” (Lemieux).
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In 1983 to 2013 research compares 25 wealthy countries and the United States with the number of past mass shootings (Lemieux). With 78 mass shootings in 30 years America experienced the highest number while “outside the United States, Germany (was second) where seven shootings occurred” (Lemieux). The numbers of precious lives from mass murder are adding up and globally America is responsible for the recurring mass shootings. Another study from ‘The New York Times’ comprises the mass shooting rate in 2000 to 2006 and 2007 to 2013. The FBI confirmed that there was an “average of 16.4 shootings a year from 2007 to 2013 and was compared with an “average of 6.4 shootings from 2000 to 2006”(Schmidt). The United States has seen the growth of about a 10% increase of mass shootings in just 6 years. If laws are not changed, then we may be looking at the 10% drastically raise within the next few years. As the days pass the terrifying numbers of mass shootings will continue to