More than 40,000 people lost their lives in the US in gun violence in 2022, the highest that the country witnessed in more than three decades. According to a report, more than half of these deaths were due to suicides.
There were several high profile mass shooting incidents in the year gone by with the most notable being the deaths of 19 children and two teachers at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas. The man behind the mass murders at the Texas school was identified as 21-year-old Salvador Ramos
Also Read: Who’s Salvador Ramos, killer of 21 people in Texas school? What was his motive?
However, according to a report by Voice of America, the number of people killed in mass shootings stood at just over 600. The same number stood at 690 in 2021 and just 336 in 2018.
Mass shootings are broadly defined as an incident in which four or more people are shot or killed, not including the shooter.
The rise in gun violence became one of the most intensely debates issues in A,erica in 2022 with even President Joe Biden expressing his anguish. Reacting to the Texas school maas shooting, Biden had said, “For God’s sake, how much more carnage are we willing to accept? How many more innocent American lives must be taken before we say enough is enough?”
US policymakers had reacted swiftly to curb the gun violence in the wake of the Texas school mass shooting. Congress approved the first national gun legislation in June last year. The law seeks to deny firearms to those deemed dangerous and a threat to public safety. However, for many Democrats and critics of gun culture, the measure was not adequate as they demanded more restrictions including a ban on semi-automatic weapons.