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The United States is a country that has always boasted about its so-called democratic values and respect for human rights, but according to official statistics since 2018, the number of victims of armed violence across the nation has exponentially increased.
Based on government statistics, we shall elucidate the growing trend of victims of armed violence in America, the majority of whom belong to ethnic and religious minorities.
According to the reports of American health institutions, including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS), in 2018, there were 14,887 incidents of firearm-related murder, of which 667 included children.
In the same year, 24,432 cases of suicide with guns were also reported. In 2019, this percentage climbed to 15,440 citizens murdered in armed conflict, 209 of whom were minors. In the same year, 24,090 people committed suicide by firearm.
These statistics have confirmed that 19,390 murders with guns, 24,156 cases of suicide with guns, and the murder of 299 children transpired throughout the US.
In 2020, which witnessed the disastrous outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic and an unprecedented surge in social turmoil and a rapidly escalating number of suicide cases, with female coloured and Asian cominities becoming the majority of victims of armed violence.
The United States also has the highest number of individuals killed in armed conflict worldwide.
In 2019 and 2020, the US had the highest number of deaths in armed hostilities, as depicted in the two images and graphs below.
After the outbreak of COVID-19 in Corona, the majority of victims of armed conflict were people of colour.
The graphic on the right depicts the number of death cases in the South Eastern United States during the armed conflicts, while the map on the left illustrates the distribution of African-Americans.
It can be construed that most firearm-related homicides in April 2021 occurred in the African-American-populated southern regions.
Due to the announcement of nationwide quarantine, the streets and public facilities have become significantly quieter and tranquil, which has led to the growth of organised crime in the form of narcotics and arms trafficking.
Moreover, according to the official data analysis in 2020, the outgrowth of drug gangs has led to a sharp increase in armed clashes with police, resulting in more cases of death.
With the ravaging Covid-19 and the closure of schools and public areas, the social tension in American society has intensified, and this tragic conundrum has become one of the facets contributing to a state of social volatility. According to most American citizens, the police are engaging in more armed operations against jobless and impoverished youth, resulting in a considerable decline in public faith in law enforcement personnel.
Meanwhile, eminent sociologists in the United States argue that violence has become a part of citizens’ daily lives, and as a result, they are gradually becoming unconcerned about the plight of armed crime. Dr Ronnie A. Dunn, an associate professor of Urban Studies at Cleveland State University, estimates that more than 100 Americans are murdered with firearms daily, and the majority of victims are members of minority groups. It is estimated that, gun violence costs the US economy 280 billion dollars annually.
All of this should serve as a reminder that gun culture at least since American Revolutionary War (1775-1783) is engrossed unlike that of any other nation in the world. American social media users seemed to echo their fear and collective insecurity, highlighting the increasingly heated debate on gun culture in America and the countless mass shootings, particularly in schools.
Gun control advocates have backed Biden’s recent anti-gun rhetoric and six executive orders, which do not require the approval of Congress
However, many people blast Biden’s political mendacity which led to deteriorating pervasive violence, ethnic hostility, widespread mental disorders, and institutional collapse. Furthermore, the US government cannot block the sale of weapons with no serial numbers that are often used in mass murders.
It would be remiss for not mentioning that the US Constitution protects the right to possess a firearm, and many Americans tenaciously oppose the restrictions on gun ownership which according to them violate their fundamental rights.
According to political commentators, Biden’s recent executive orders will have an inconsequential impact on the number of weapons sales in the country, due to the difficulty of amending the principles of the American Constitution.
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