The specter of gun violence in the United States has gotten to epidemic proportions. Data by various independent organizations reveals that over 30,000 Americans die of gun-related violence every year. Just a few days ago, a mass shooting incident at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School left scores dead, and the gun control debate has been rekindled. Perhaps the most spectacular development since the fatal shooting incident has been the proposition by President Donald Trump that teachers ought to be armed with concealed guns in the event of similar attacks. Beyond these knee-jerk proposals, the latest incident is the recent reminder of the pressing problem the nation faces. It is also reminiscent of the previous mass shooting incidents that have littered the past few years. Effective resolution of this menace demands that it is adequately understood with comprehension of gun violence geography being a primary project. Not only does such geographical data reveal the region specific causes of gun violence but also the effectiveness of measures previously adopted.
Gun violence primarily takes the form of gun-related homicide and suicide, and extensive research has been conducted to establish specific incidences. The center for disease control (CDC) estimates 60 percent of firearm-related deaths in the United States take place in 62 cities that make up the country’s fifty largest metros (Florida, 2012). However, suicides were significantly lower in American cities at 27% in 2006. Firearm suicides are predominantly a suburban phenomenon in the country that could point to the relationship between firearm deaths and the levels of unemployment in cities. Even in cities, the rate of gun violence varies substantially with New Orleans reporting the highest levels at 32.8 per 100,000 while Boston, with the lowest levels, has 3.6 per 100,000. In the same category as New Orleans are cities like Las Vegas (17.6), Memphis (19.8) and Jacksonville (17.5). Together in a lower category with Boston are San Jose (3.8), Providence (4.1), Harford (4.8) and New York (4.8) (Doleac & Carr, 2016).
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The differentials between cities are also considerable even in the case of suicide varying from 11.4 to 1.5 per 100,000 individuals. Las Vegas (11.4), Birmingham (9.4), Louisville (9.2), New Orleans (8.7), Phoenix (9) and Nashville (9.7) have some of the highest rates of gun-related suicide in American cities. On the other side is providence (2.6), Chicago (3.1), Harford (2.1), San Jose (2.6) and Boston (1.7) (Florida, 2012).
From the aforementioned, we can tell that gun-related suicide in the United States is higher in sub-urban and rural areas than cities while gun-related homicides are more common in cities. However, even within cities themselves, there are major differences. The standard image of a potential mass shooter in the mind of an American is that of a mentally deranged, stressed person or drug user. While this image has been reinforced in media reporting, it tells us little about the distribution of gun violence. However, there is a connection between gun violence and levels of poverty and prevalence of low incomes at the state level. This is clearly understandable given the high levels of economic anxiety associated with such conditions. A similar pattern is also exhibited in various cities. Indeed, cities with disproportionately higher levels of poverty and inequality tend to experience higher levels of gun-related deaths than their counterparts with lower levels of poverty and unemployment (Doleac & Carr, 2016). It is commonly assumed that the more populous a city, the more likely the risk of gun violence and deaths. As the presented figures bear out, there is no clear connection between the two: even if there are populous cities with a high rate of the gun violence, there are similar cities with remarkably lower levels (Webster, Whitehill, Vernick, & Curriero, 2013).
At the level of policy, interesting findings have been made. Red states, which have more liberal gun ownership policies, have more gun-related deaths than other states. Gun deaths are negatively correlated with jurisdictions especially states that require trigger locks, enforce safe storage gun requirements and impose bans on assault weapons. In addition, states with blue-collar economies tended to have more gun violence than those with more college-trained graduates and thus more robust knowledge-based economies (Florida, 2012). So clearly, education plays a potent role with there being negative correlations between gun death and increased share of college graduates.
The geography of gun violence has led to interests in psychogeography of gun deaths. Richard Nisbett famous study sought to examine the prevalence of gun violence in the American South. After a thorough consideration of possible explanations that had to do with poverty, hotter climatic conditions and a legacy of slavery, he came to a conclusion that a deep culture of honor whereby residents place tremendous value on reputation, property, and family was strongly linked to gun violence. When these things are threatened, it leads to an aggressive reaction thus higher rate of domestic violence and murder. More recent studies have reinforced Nisbett’s original findings that have proven valuable in explaining the disproportionately higher levels of high school violence in southern schools (Rubens & Shehadeh, 2014).
Conclusion
Gun violence has been one of the vexing problems facing the United States today. Currently, the US has the highest number of gun-related fatalities in the developed world. Despite this grim reality, there has been little headway in finding an amicable solution thanks to political fractures and the role of interest groups. This is particularly saddening given the wealth of research that proposes various multi-faceted approaches to the challenge. It has been contended here that emphasis on the geographical distribution of gun violence could provide far-reaching insights on how best to confront the menace.
- Doleac, J., & Carr, J. (2016). The geography, incidence, and underreporting of gun violence: new evidence using ShotSpotter data. The Brookings Institution.
- Florida, R. (2012). The Geography of U.S. Gun Violence. CityLab.
- Rubens, M., & Shehadeh, N. (2014). Gun Violence in United States: In Search for a Solution. Frontiers in Public Health.
- Webster, D., Whitehill, J. M., Vernick, J., & Curriero, F. (2013). Effects of Baltimore’s Safe Streets Program on Gun Violence: A Replication of Chicago’s CeaseFire Program. Journal of Urban Health, 27-40.
