More Americans died of gun-related injuries in 2022 than any other year on record, and gun violence was the leading cause of death for children. The Center for American Progress is committed to advancing evidence-based gun violence prevention policies and advocating for local, state, and federal investments in violence prevention programs and victim services. We are also committed to examining gun violence through a racial equity lens and rooting out systemic racism because while gun violence affects every community in the United States, young Black and brown people experience the highest rates of gun homicides.
We can help build safe and just communities by holding gun manufacturers and the gun industry accountable, closing gun law loopholes, and balancing immediate actions we can take to address recent increases in gun violence with long-term solutions focused on root causes. In addition to passing gun control laws to address how easy it is to buy a gun in America, the country must advance holistic community safety and justice policies that advocate for investments in solutions that prevent crime before it happens and defend criminal justice reforms wrongly blamed for increasing crime.
Debunking Myths the Gun Lobby Perpetuates Following Mass Shootings
The facts disprove the dangerous myths that the gun lobby routinely deploys following mass shootings in its attempts to undermine calls for commonsense gun reform.
Debunking Myths the Gun Lobby Perpetuates Following Mass Shootings
The facts disprove the dangerous myths that the gun lobby routinely deploys following mass shootings in its attempts to undermine calls for commonsense gun reform.
Recommendations for Newly Confirmed ATF Director Steve Dettelbach
This coalition letter, led by the Center for American Progress in partnership with gun violence prevention and allied organizations, includes a list of immediate actions the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives can take to reduce gun violence.
Hospital-Based Intervention Programs Reduce Violence and Save Money
Hospital-based community violence intervention programs combat cycles of violent crime and retaliation by engaging patients in the recovery process immediately following injury.
Media Coverage Often Ignore Guns as the Main Driver of the Recent Rise in Violent Crime
The word “gun” or another synonymous variation was only included in 3.5 percent of headlines and summaries of online news posts that included the words “murders” or “homicides,” even though 80 percent of homicides are committed with a firearm, and gun homicides increased by 35 percent.
Community-Based Violence Interruption Programs Can Reduce Gun Violence
Violence interruption is a community-based intervention strategy that can reduce gun violence and improve public safety in neighborhoods around the country.
How Americans Can Fight Back Against a Radical Supreme Court Majority
Responding to the judicial overreach of a radical Supreme Court majority will require long-term structural reforms to the courts and immediate action to mitigate the harms caused by their wrongly decided decisions.
Gun Violence Disproportionately and Overwhelmingly Hurts Communities of Color
The lack of investment in communities of color, coupled with weak gun laws, has resulted in devastatingly high rates of gun violence for Black and brown people.
Gun violence against police officers is a major problem in the United States, but elected officials are still adopting counterproductive measures opposed by law enforcement agencies.
