Gun Violence in the U.S.

Gun violence in the United States is no secret. Anyone with access to a computer or news outlets is aware of the impact gun violence has on U.S. citizens. This year alone has already seen approximately 22,000 gun deaths – this includes homicides and suicides. I’ve put together a compilation of gun violence statistics for anyone who wants more information but may not have the time to do the research on their own. While these numbers are changing frequently and we can never know the exact statistics at every minute, I’ve cross-checked multiple sources to give you the most accurate information available.

For years, this country has had one of the highest rates of death by firearms compared to other countries. We also have the highest gun ownership per capita, sitting at approximately 120.5 firearms per 100 people. According to healthdata.org, a study done in 2019 found that the United States sat in fourth place among 40 of the largest countries for deaths by firearms, only having less than Colombia, Brazil, and Mexico. In 2021, the U.S. had the highest rate of firearm homicide at 4.52 per 100,000 among high-income countries with populations over 10 million; Saudi Arabia was second with 1.46 per 100,000.

While it’s shocking that we have more firearms than any other country in the world, it makes sense that we see a large number of gun deaths each year. The national average sits at approximately 13.7 per 100,000. In 2024, Mississippi had the highest amount of gun deaths at 29.6. Louisiana and Alabama followed closely at 28.2 and 25.5. The states with the lowest gun deaths in 2024 were California, Connecticut, Hawaii, Rhode Island, New York, New Jersey, and Massachusetts, with less than 10 per 100,000. Now, obviously California has had more deaths than Mississippi, but this is broken down by per capita deaths. For a better picture, let’s look at Mississippi (population of 2.94 million) and Connecticut (3.68 million). With a difference of just over 700,000 people, Connecticut has a gun death ratio of only 5.8 per 100,000, five times lower than Mississippi. According to this map obtained from the Gun Violence Archives, Republican led states generally have a higher rate of gun deaths than Democratic led states, contrary to popular belief.

All gun deaths are a tragedy, whether it be a mass shooting, homicide, suicide, or unintentional. While common sense gun reform continues to be a major talking point for Democrats and Liberals, there haven’t been many federal changes to the process of legally obtaining a gun. Some states have adopted stricter gun laws, while most states remain relatively lax. For example, it is much easier to walk into a firearm store in Georgia, and walk out an hour later with a new gun, than it is in Oregon. On the other side, Republicans and Conservatives have continued to blame mental illness for the amount of gun deaths. And, while I don’t disagree, we haven’t seen action to provide more accessible mental health programs for those that need it, only severe cuts to the programs already in place.

According to the GVA, there were a total of 16,725 gun deaths in 2024. This is the lowest number since 2019. Of those, 250 were children between the ages of 0 and 11 years old, 1,171 were children ages 12 to 17 years, and 1.445 were the suspects of the shootings. When it comes to mass shootings (described as incidents that result in four or more deaths, not including the shooter), there were just over 500 in 2024. There have been 302 this year. The demographics of individuals who committed mass shootings are pretty straight-forward. Men account for 98% of all mass shootings, excluding gang violence, that have taken place since 1966, with 53% being white and 21% being black.

While gun deaths overall have continued to slowly decrease since 2020, the suicide rate continues to increase slightly each year. The suicide by firearm rate for 2024 is still pending on the GVA website, but it was 27,310 in 2023. It is expected to be slightly higher this year if the trend continues.

We know gun violence isn’t the only type of violent crime seen in the United States, although it is the most prevalent. In a data report released by the FBI, a staggering 14 million criminal offenses were reported to the Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program by participating law enforcement agencies. When that data was analyzed, it was determined that a violent crime took place every 25.9 seconds in 2024, with a rape happening every 4.1 minutes and a murder happening every 31.1 minutes. According to the Hate Crime collection, which consisted of 16,419 agencies nationwide, there were 13,683 offenses motivated by race, ethnicity, ancestry, religion, sexual orientation, disability, gender, and gender identity.

In all honesty, the type of violence doesn’t matter. It has become one of the biggest issues and leading causes of death in this country, and things need to change. Whether it’s a child in a classroom, a politician, a well-known figure, or a woman who was walking down the street, the violence needs to be controlled. I am a strong supporter of our second amendment right to bear arms, but I’m also an advocate for common sense gun reform, access to affordable mental health programs, and amplifying survivors’ voices. No one deserves to be killed for their beliefs, what they were wearing, or for simply being in the wrong place at the wrong time. If there’s one thing we can all come together on, it’s just that. I’m tired of seeing people die in situations we’ve all been in. Something needs to change.