2021 is on pace to become the worst year of gun violence in decades, surpassing higher levels than last year.
The Gun Violence Archive states from January 1 to September 15 a total of 14,516 people died from gun violence in the US. This is a nine percent increase from this same period in 2020. From the beginning of the year to September 15,498 mass shootings have occurred across the US for an average of 1.92 per day (It should be noted that the definition of what classifies as a mass shooting varies). This is 15% higher than it was at this time last year (CNN).
However, experts believe the rapid rise in gun violence might be slowing down. Richard Rosenfeld, Professor at the University of Missouri—Saint Louis found the first quarter of 2021 was 23% higher than in 2020. The second quarter number was down 10%.
Rosenfeld felt some of the factors of this rise in gun violence could be the pandemic and racial issues since the murder of George Floyd. New gun owners also went up in the past year. The record number was 23 million firearms, up 65% from 2019. Additionally, two proposals from the Biden administration’s Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives focus on regulating certain types of pistol braces and ghost guns.
