There were more than 11,000 deaths because of murder or manslaughter using a firearm in 2016. According to a 2017 survey, about 40% of Americans say they own a gun or live in a household with one, and the rate of murder or manslaughter by firearm is the highest in the developed world. There have been more than 90 mass shootings in the US since 1982, according to investigative magazine, Mother Jones. These are staggering figures and I want to give my opinion to the question lots have been thinking, should guns be banned in the US?

Here is a timeline of the worst mass shootings in the US since 1991:

• Parkland, Florida 2018

          Victims killed- 17

• Las Vegas, Nevada 2017

          Victims killed- 58

• Orlando, Florida 2016

          Victims killed- 49

• Virginia Tech, Virginia 2007

          Victims killed- 32

• Sandy Hook, Connecticut 2012

          Victim killed- 27

• Sutherland Springs, Texas 2017

          Victims killed- 26

• Killeen, Texas 1991

          Victims killed- 23

• San Bernardino, California 2015

         Victims killed- 14

• Fort Hood, Texas 2009

          Victims killed- 13

• Columbine, Colorado 1999

          Victims killed- 13

The Las Vegas attack was the worst attack in recent US history, and the three shootings with the highest number of casualties have all happened in the last 10 years. So many lives have been lost, so many families have been broken and torn apart, if this is happening, then why are guns still around? Why aren’t enough people speaking out to make a difference to our society?

Owning a gun has become a normal part of American culture, with the NRA being a highly influential group throughout the US. The NRA is an American non-profit organization that advocates for gun rights. NRA stands for National Rifle Association. The group was founded in 1871 as a recreational group designed to "promote and encourage rifle shooting on a scientific basis". The NRA are heavily against all forms of gun control and argued aggressively that more guns make the country safer. It relies on, and defends, a disputed interpretation of the Second Amendment to the US Constitution, which it argues gives US citizens the rights to bear arms.

In my opinion, I believe guns should be banned in the US. If we didn’t have guns, there would be less shootings and less lives lost. Innocent people are killed everyday due to gun violence, this must stop. We need to consider alternative ways to settle disputes and ways to protect ourselves. We need peace in our world, not violence and to be able to take a step closer to that goal, we need to ban guns in the country where this is most present. While I understand this cannot be achieved overnight, we need to at least start to talk about the issues we face and share ideas to what can be done in the future.

 

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