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There is no single, simple solution to reducing gun violence in this country. However, there are a number of common-sense steps that would be a great place to start—steps that could be taken right now.
Gun Violence Prevention
Senior Constituency Media Associate
[email protected]
Director, Media Relations
Interim Executive Vice President, Communications
Senior Director, Government Affairs
Gun violence in the United States is a public health crisis.
It goes beyond the mass shootings that grab the nation’s attention. Every day, gun violence takes lives from communities all across the country in the form of suicides, unintentional shootings, and interpersonal conflicts that become fatal due to easy access to guns.
In this country, an average of 35,000 people are killed with guns every year—96 each day.
Yet this violence is not inevitable. Every other developed nation in the world does a better job of protecting its people from gun violence. The gun murder rate in the United States is 25 times higher than it is in peer nations, and American teenagers are 82 times more likely to die from a gun homicide than their international peers.
The positions of American Progress, and our policy experts, are independent, and the findings and conclusions presented are those of American Progress alone. American Progress would like to acknowledge the many generous supporters who make our work possible.
Protecting people from crime is one of the government’s most fundamental and urgent responsibilities. However, the current reality is that too many crimes go unsolved and too many victims lack justice. The Center for American Progress is committed to advancing evidence-based policies that keep individuals safe by solving crime when it happens, ensuring swift and certain accountability for those who harm others, and preventing crime in the first place.
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