Dear Mr./Ms. President,

First, I would like to congratulate you on your recent victory and I wish you the best of luck with your presidency. I have written this letter to express my concern on the topic of gun control. The United States of America is considered one of the safest, most free, and progressive countries in the world, yet gun violence is almost twenty times higher here than in any other developed country. We pride ourselves on giving our citizens the opportunity to pursue their interests and happiness, but gun violence is creating racial, social, and governmental tension which is inhibiting this pursuit. 

I remember coming home from school when I was in seventh grade and seeing the Sandy Hook school shooting on TV, knowing that just as well could have been me being killed at school. According to the Harvard School of Public Health, crime is decreasing in the US, while mass shootings are increasing. Shootings seemingly occur every other week and are so ingrained into society, we have become desensitized to these tragedies. Something needs to be done about gun violence in America, because it is resulting in the deaths of many innocent people. The Federal Bureau of Investigation states, based on the 2014 homicide rate, one in every 285 Americans will be murdered. There are many ways that we can decrease the proliferation of gun violence in America, including more thorough background checks, closing the gun show loophole, and banning the sale of assault rifles. By lowering the possibility of someone who has bad intentions or mental illness to buy a gun, we will also lower the risk of mass shootings and terrorism too.

The laws should be much stricter regarding the process of acquiring a firearm and ammunition. More thorough background checks should be enforced and people who have been or are currently on the “watch list” for terrorism should not be able to buy a gun. Someone who has mental health issues should not be able to buy a gun either, due to the uncontrollable risk they pose to citizens. Those who oppose stricter gun control believe that the 2nd Amendment guarantees every citizen a gun and any kind of gun control is therefore unconstitutional. The Founding Fathers could never have imagined just how advanced our weapons would become and the Second Amendment's true purpose is vague, outdated, and ultimately invalid. We do not have to restrict everyone's ability to buy a gun, just those who are unfit to own one. Overall, with your help Mr./Ms. President, we can hopefully stop or at least minimize this problem that ails our society.

Sincerely,

Jack R.