In America guns have been a part of the country’s society since
it’s birth. Throughout history the citizens of the US have used
firearms to protect the nation, protect their families, to hunt for
food and to engage in sporting activities. The issue of Guns and
gun control takes on a proportion of extreme magnitude. Weighing
the rights and liberties of the individual against the welfare and
safety of the public has always been a precarious balancing act. In
the United States, gun control is one of these tumultuous issues
that has both sides firmly entrenched in their positions. Those
parties in favor of gun ownership and the freedom to use and keep
arms, rely on the fact that the provision for such rights is
enshrined in their constitution. In this climate of growing
violence, rife with turmoil and crime, gun advocates feel more than
ever that their position is justified. As citizens of the “Land of
the Free” possessing a gun is a fundamental right, and may even be
a necessity.
Should the mere fact that criminals committing crimes with the use
of guns infringe the national right of the innocent to possess
guns. This is a question that arouses everywhere and no matter
which way it is viewed the controversy will always go on. "A gun is
a mere tool that can be used for good or evil. Our country is based
on the belief that man is good until he or she is proven to be
otherwise."(Harris p.2) This means that only a few people are
committing crimes with uses of guns and why completely remove them
from society. Therefore, we should strenuously protect the rights
of free men and likewise prosecute and punish the criminals who
abuse the rights of others.
The problem with gun violence is associated with the child's
atmosphere. Moreover, we need to educate young children about
responsibly handling guns and educate them to respect life…
. On 23 January, a 15-year-old boy opened fire with a handgun at
the start of the school day at a Kentucky high school, killing two
students and wounding others.
The day before, a teenager was wounded by a shot fired in her
school cafeteria in Texas.
The same day, a bullet grazed a 14-year-old boy in the parking
lot of a New Orleans high school.
Earlier in January, shootings took place in Iowa, Washington
state and California, among other places.
FULL RECOMMENDATIONS for Preventing Gun
Violence
Gun safety: Part of a public health
approach to gun violence is about preventing the imminent risk of
lethality through sensible gun laws and a culture of
safety.
- Sensible gun laws: Reduce easy
access to dangerous weapons by banning high
capacity magazines and bump stocks, requiring universal
background checks without loopholes, instituting waiting
periods, and reinstituting the assault weapons ban
immediately.
- Establish a culture of gun safety: As
the nation on earth with the most guns, we must make sure people
are safe.
- Reduce firearm access to youth and individuals who
are at risk of harming themselves or others.
who
- Hold the gun industry accountable and ensure there
is adequate oversight over the marketing and sales of guns and
ammunition.
- Engage responsible gun dealers and
owners in solutions. For
example, some gun dealers and range owners are already being
trained in suicide prevention.
- Insist on mandatory training and
licensing for
owners. This training should include recurring
education to renew permits, with a graduated licensing process at
least as stringent as for driver's licenses.
- Require safe and secure gun storage.
For example, in King County, Washington, public health has teamed
up with firearm storage device retailers. In addition to safe
storage being tax exempt in Washington, through the LOK-IT-UP
initiative, residents can learn about the importance of safe
storage, purchase devices at discounted rates and learn how to
practice safe storage in the home.
- Public health solutions: Recognize gun violence as
a critical and preventable public health problem. 100
mayors.
- Comprehensive solutions: Support community planning
and implementation of comprehensive community
safety plans that include prevention and
intervention. reduction in youth victims of crime,
and a 76% reduction in youth arrests with a gun from 2007-2015. Yet
too many communities lack the resources to do what is needed. We
must commit to helping communities identify and implement
solutions.
- Trauma, connection, and services:
Expand access to high quality, culturally competent,
coordinated, social, emotional, and
mental health supports
and address the impact of
trauma. Too often gun violence is blamed
on mental illness, when in fact in most cases people who carry out
shootings do not have a diagnosable mental illness. However,
throughout a community, members often recognize individuals who are
disconnected and/or otherwise in need of additional supports and
services. It is critical to reduce the stigma associated with
mental health needs and support our children, friends, family
members, and neighbors in seeking and obtaining appropriate
supports. For this to work, communities need resources to
assess and connect individuals at a high risk for harming
themselves or others to well-coordinated social, emotional, and
mental health supports and services, particularly in critical times
of crisis and high need. Further, trauma can have damaging
effects on learning, behavior, and health across the life course,
especially during key developmental stages such as early childhood
and adolescence, and can increase the risk for multiple forms
of violence. We need to do more to recognize trauma, develop
trauma-informed protocols, including for law enforcement, and
support healing and treatment for individuals who have experienced
or are experiencing trauma, including from exposure to violence in
any form.
Prevention Infrastructure: Beyond
addressing the risk and underlying factors of gun violence, a
public health approach also entails building a prevention
infrastructure with mechanisms for scale, sustainability, and
effectiveness. The UNITY RoadMap is a tool to support prevention
infrastructure.
- Support gun violence research:
Ensure that the Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention (CDC) a