By Joshua Raymundo

Staff Writer

As if the 26 murdered in Newton was not enough, the 17 schoolchildren killed in Parkland serve as a searing reminder of the United State’s faulty gun control policies. Despite these recent events, there is still debate amongst politicians if gun control should be increased, and how to go about it. Providing stricter gun control should be the main focus of politicians, and passing gun control legislation will substantially decrease the effect of mass shootings.

The problem is the current lack of background checks in the United States. Citizens who are not suited to buy a firearm still manage to pass through the system and cause harm.  Everytownresearch.org explains that these people contribute to the overall rising levels of gun-related violence and deaths, and are partially responsible for the 13,000 homicides per year.

The lack of gun control has also exacerbated overall violence. The Washington Post explained that as of March 14th, there were 2,837 gun-related deaths in 2018 alone.  On average, 96 people are killed by guns every single day. Compared to previous years, that number has significantly increased. Trace.org found that from 2012 to 2016, gun-related deaths increased by 5,095 deaths overall.

Moreover, violence has increased because mass murderers have taken advantage of the loopholes in the system.  The most notable example of this was when Las Vegas murderer Stephen Paddock used a bump stock on a semi-automatic gun that gave his firearm the capability of an automatic machine gun.

This is one of the many reasons as to why gun control is necessary for domestic tranquility.  A 2013 study led by Boston University found that a 1 percent increase in gun ownership led to a 0.9 increase in homicide rate.  There is an indisputable correlation between an increase in murders and an increase in gun ownership.

The United States government needs to institute stricter gun control policies.  First, there needs to be a federal ban on automatic and semi-automatic weapons. Moreover, the United States government needs to outlaw bump stocks, because they are extremely dangerous and have evidently been used to cause serious harm.

In addition, universal background checks need to be instituted in the U.S.  They are an integral part towards making gun control effective, and have been proven to work. For example, background checks have prevented 3 million gun sales to prohibited people. This was largely beneficial to many states, because the Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence noted that states with background checks experienced a 64% decrease in mass shootings, and a 53% decrease in firearm suicides, as opposed to states with no background checks.

Every month, a mass shooting occurs, outrage is sparked, and after no legislation is passed, the issue eventually dies.  Given time, another mass shooting takes place, and the cycle continues. The U.S. Congress has the responsibility to solve society’s most prominent issues; not exacerbate them by doing nothing.