(C) Daily Kos This story was originally published by Daily Kos and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . Gun Violence is Widespread and Disproportionately Hurts People of Color [1] ['This Content Is Not Subject To Review Daily Kos Staff Prior To Publication.', 'Backgroundurl Avatar_Large', 'Nickname', 'Joined', 'Created_At', 'Story Count', 'N_Stories', 'Comment Count', 'N_Comments', 'Popular Tags'] Date: 2023-04-11 A new and sweeping survey by the Kaiser Family Foundation has found that over half of Americans have experienced gun-related violence, with one in five having been personally threatened with a gun, or having a relative who has been so threatened. The survey shines a light on just how prevalent and, sadly, normal, gun-related violence has become. Furthermore, people of color are more likely to experience gun-related violence compared to white people. The issue really is emblematic of the state of the country. Networks Steeped in Gun Violence In the survey, the Kaiser Family Foundation defined a “gun-related incident” as an incident involving a gun, such as seeing a shooting, being threatened by a gun, or someone being killed by a gun. They found that 21% of adults have been threatened by a gun, 17% have witnessed someone being injured by a gun. They also found that 4% of adults have been injured by a gun, and another 4% have shot one in self-defense. Americans are living in networks steeped in gun violence and this is reflected in the survey’s findings, which show that 31% of adults have had a family member who was threatened by a gun, 28% have a family member who saw someone injured from a gun, 20% have a family member who was injured by a gun, and 19% have a family member who was killed by a gun, including death by suicide. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 55% of deaths in the U.S. that involve guns, are suicides. Source: Kaiser Family Foundation People of Color Are Disproportionately Affected by Gun Violence The Kaiser Family Foundation found that people of color are more likely to experience gun-related violence. In fact, race and ethnicity are the most reliable and important predictors of gun-related violence. According to the survey, 31% of Black adults are likely to have personally witnessed gun-related violence, compared to 14% of White adults. Furthermore, 34% of Black adults are likely to have a family member who has been killed as a result of gun violence, compared to 17% of White adults. Source: Kaiser Family Foundation A Nation at War According to the Small Arms Survey , there are 120.5 guns for every 100 people in the United States. We are the leading country in the world in terms of gun ownership. In other words, there are more guns in America than people. When you consider that many Americans do not own a gun at all, there are significant sections of the country who own multiple guns. In fact, just 31% of households own guns, according to the General Social Survey , with 39% of White households owning a gun, and 18.1% of Black households owning one. Country Guns Per 100 People Population Number of Guns United States 120.50 326,474,000 393,347,000 Falkland Islands 62.10 3,000 2,000 Yemen 52.80 28,120,000 14,859,000 New Caledonia 42.50 270,000 115,000 Serbia 39.10 6,946,000 2,719,000 Montenegro 39.10 626,000 245,000 Uruguay 34.70 36,626,000 12,708,000 Canada 34.70 3,457,000 1,198,000 Cyprus 34.00 839,000 285,000 Finland 32.40 5,541,00 1,793,000 Source: Small Arms Survey This is especially concerning when you consider that reforming gun laws has been hampered by Republican intransigence, an intransigence based on the fact that guns have become an important part of the Republican identity . Source: Pew Research Until Republicans break free from their belief that guns are a vital and necessary part of their identity, America will remain a nation-in-arms, at war with itself, disproportionately killing Black Americans. [END] --- [1] Url: https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2023/4/11/2163431/-Gun-Violence-is-Widespread-and-Disproportionately-Hurts-People-of-Color Published and (C) by Daily Kos Content appears here under this condition or license: Site content may be used for any purpose without permission unless otherwise specified. via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds: gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/dailykos/