Gracie B. Oregon

Compromise on Gun Control

Firearms must be further regulated to protect U.S. citizens.

Dear Next President,

In 2015, there were 372 mass shootings, just in the U.S., according to BBC News. A mass shooting is defined as an incident in which four or more people are killed or injured. CBS News wrote, “the United States accounted for 82% of all gun deaths” when compared to 22 other nations. The rates of gun violence that U.S. citizens experience is significantly higher than almost any other country in the world. This violence must be controlled and contained and you are the one who can make it happen.

Americans are resisting change in the way we dispense firearms because they are afraid of changing tradition. More specifically, many citizens oppose changing the 2nd amendment. Even though this amendment aids criminals, terrorists, suicidal people, and mentally unstable citizens in taking lives and causing injuries people are still resisting change. The second amendment was established when firearms were not nearly as effective or dangerous. Citizens should have the right to be able to defend themselves, but should not be given the opportunity to take advantage of their rights. These rights should, by no means, be revoked or taken away, but the process of purchasing and owning a weapon must be more extensive than they are now to protect innocent lives from slaughter.

The U.S. has one of the highest rates of gun violence in the world and it is not due to the large population. Some writers claim that, because of the dense population and large size of our nation, the statistics are not proportional. This is not true. The statistics are significant, even when comparing the U.S. to other countries by proportion. According to BBC News, “Of all the murders in the US in 2012, 60% were by firearm compared with 31% in Canada, 18.2% in Australia, and just 10% in the UK.” In an article comparing Canada’s gun laws and gun laws in the U.S., National Observer wrote, “Prohibited firearms include military-grade assault weapons such as AK-47s and sawn-off rifles or shotguns. Handguns are generally classified as restricted weapons, while rifles and shotguns are usually non-restricted.” If we, as a country can make restrictions on assault weapons (weapons literally made to assault people), we will be able to live together in less chaos.

You, as the President of the United States, must make changes to further prevent the amount of accidental, homicidal, and suicidal deaths caused by firearms. I believe that you are capable of convincing our citizens to do the right thing and that you can assuage the fear that citizens have of each other. Have motivation to save your citizens from each other and their weapons.

Sincerely,

Grace B.