Americans Stage Nationwide Rallies To Push For Stronger Gun Control Laws

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The mass demonstrations were organized by a group called "March For Our Lives" (Credit: Mobilus In Mobili/ CC BY-SA 2.0/ Wikimedia Commons)

Tens of thousands of Americans across the country took to the streets on June 11, 2022, to once again push for more stringent gun control laws. The rallies come in the wake of the tragic deaths of 19 students and two teachers at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, on May 24, 2022, and ten shoppers at a Buffalo, New York, grocery store on June 2, 2022.

March for Our Lives, the student-led movement created by the survivors of the 2018 school shooting in Parkland, Florida, organized the demonstrations. Since the group's last nationwide protests in 2018, mass shootings — where four or more people (not including the shooter) are injured or killed — have been steadily increasing in the US. According to the Gun Violence Archive, the number of incidents rose from 417 in 2019 to 610 in 2020 to 692 in 2021. 2022 is keeping pace with last year, with 267 such tragedies recorded in just the first six months. The nonprofit, which has been tracking the numbers since 2014, reports that before 2019, there were below 400 incidents annually.

The mass shootings in 2022 have been widespread around the country (Credit: Gunarchive.org)

The mass rallies and rising number of shootings have not gone unnoticed. On June 12, 2022, Senate negotiators from the Democratic and Republican parties announced that they had agreed on an outline to approve new gun safety measures. The details are still being finalized. But the legislation is expected to include, among other things, broader background checks for prospective gun buyers under the age of 21. It will also prohibit individuals convicted of domestic violence from owning weapons.

"Today, we are announcing a common-sense, bipartisan proposal to protect America's children, keep our schools safe and reduce the threat of violence across our country," the 20 senators said in a joint statement. "Families are scared, and it is our duty to come together and get something done that will help restore their sense of safety and security in their communities."

The proposal will now be written into legislative text and presented to Congress for approval. The senators hope to expedite the process and get the new law passed before lawmakers leave for a two-week summer recess on June 24, 2022.

Resources: Washingtonpost.com, NPR.com, CBS.com, CNN.com, Marchforourlives.com

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35 Comments
  • sureiguess
    sureiguess4 months
    srop gun violence
    • 23seamush
      23seamush4 months
      #stopGunViolence spread this
      • msmarvel12
        msmarvel128 months
        #StopGunVoilence spread this hastag
        • cabingirl10
          cabingirl1011 months
          #StopGunViolence Follow me and spread this hashtag.
        • stark3000
          stark300011 months
          Cause, ya know, I don't see Tony Stark flying around with Jarvis in his red and gold suit. 😉
          • stark3000
            stark300011 months
            I don't think we should be able to buy guns without a license, that would just give the people who aren't allowed to have one a gun. Talk about dangerous! But they definitely shouldn't take them away either. Think about what they're doing with the weapons they take away. Where are they going anyway? Plus we need guns to protect ourselves. The shootings happen, because there aren't people to stop it. If guns are legal, people can use them to protect themselves, but if there not. . .what will protect us when we need it?
            • summer_beach
              summer_beach11 months
              God bless the USA and it's freedomes! USA!
              • deafgirlhistory
                March for our own lives! All of this violence must stop! I thought 2022 will be better year since 2020 and 2021 Covid year but now instead, it just grows worse like, 1. War between Ukraine and Russia, 2. the Texas school shooting, 3. Government taking the people`s money, 4. the racist-hate shooting, etc...all this world needs is less fighting and more love! #MustStopShooting! #SaveThe World! #SaveLives!
                • krf3110
                  krf311011 months
                  stop this! save lives!
                  • summer_beach
                    summer_beach11 months
                    I think people are getting payed for making mass shootings so they can get rid of our guns! I am literally trembling as I wrote this. (so scared)