Skip to main content

Putting Mass Shootings in Context

Members of Emanuel AME Church mourning in the aftermath
2015 certainly looks and feels like the “year of the mass shooting.”  Charleston, Roseburg, San Bernadino.  These are a few of the many tragic cases of mass shootings that have rocked families and communities across the US.  

Each of these stories have received a ton of mass media attention; we see images of crime scenes, hear first-person accounts of survivors and the families of victims, and learn quite a bit about the deranged people behind these atrocities. Mass shootings are a sad--but all too familiar--reminder of the work ahead to end gun violence in the US.  

But, are mass shootings really on the rise?  And are they really a big part of the gun violence epidemic?

Some descriptive data helps put mass shootings in context.  The folks at Mass Shooting Tracker have compiled the best data on mass shootings (events where 4 or more people get shot) in the US.  To my knowledge, they have the best national data on mass shootings around.  

Here are some useful statistics:

2013: 364 mass shootings -- 502 people killed
2014: 337 mass shootings – 383 people killed
2015: 353 mass shootings (to date)  – 462 people killed

During this same period, the US has averaged about 30,000 gun-related deaths each year.  About 20,000 of these are suicide related deaths while 10,000 or so are homicide-related.  To date, we are on pace to see somewhere in the ballpark of 460 gun deaths caused by mass shootings.  This represents about 1.5% of the total number of lives lost to guns in the US.  And according to Mass Shooting Tracker, this number is actually a dip from the 502 mass shooting deaths in 2013.  

So, why then are we so fixated on mass shootings?

Police in San Bernadino responded heroically
From a popular media perspective, mass shootings are a lot like serial killings.  They are unusually tragic events that make for salacious headlines.  The news media loves to focus on mass shootings because they are so atypical.  

If anything, mass shootings bring into focus the experiences of families, friends, and entire communities rocked by fatal shootings.  The other day, there was a great article in the Washington Post about families of children slain at Sandy Hook.  Three years later, families are still picking up the pieces.  The psychic wounds from losing a child, sibling, or best friend don't just get better.  They take a long time to heal, if ever.  Hopefully we can use the attention from these tragic events to highlight the support we should also be pouring into neighborhoods and communities where young people are getting killed with guns everyday.  Too many people in places like Chicago, Detroit, Philadelphia, Compton, St. Louis, Baltimore, and other places know the pain of losing someone to gun violence.  

Maybe we can start by writing members of Congress, asking them to lift the ban on CDC funds to study the problem of gun violence?  Without rigorous science, how can we expect to come up with interventions to end gun violence?

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Long Shadow of Gun Violence (In Loving Memory of Bette Clark)

I met Bette and her oldest son, Joey, during a death penalty trial in Center City.  It was the sentencing phase for the two men who killed her youngest son, Timmy, who was gunned down execution-style when he was 15. Caroline, an advocate with the Families of Murder Victims, introduced us.  "Bette, this is Jooyoung.  He's a researcher and wants to interview you."  Joey sized me up and seemed protective of his mom, who had already been through so much.  Her eyes were red from crying, so I said, "I'm really sorry to hear about what happened." She smiled a little and said in her Tacony accent, "Thank you. It's been such a long day.  But, call me whenever, sure." I spent the next day with Bette and her family at the courthouse and visited them weekly over the next year.  I hadn't planned on following the families of murder victims, but my ongoing research in Philly had pushed me in this direction.   While getting to know gunshot...
8 comments
Read more

Bas Rutten's Punk Payback: How (Not) to Act During a Robbery

El Guapo I love Bas "El Guapo" Rutten.  The Dutchman was a former UFC Heavyweight Champion, 3-time King of Pancrase, and an all-around badass.  Following his illustrious fighting career, he transitioned into MMA commentary.  I've found his commentary insightful and think that he comes across as a very humble and approachable person. Recently, I learned that Fuel TV was producing a show for Rutten called "Punk Payback."  I immediately thought that the show would be a spin-off of MTV's "Bully Beatdown," a show in which professional MMA fighters confront and beat up bullies.   To me, this would make sense: Bas Rutten was bullied when he was younger and openly talks about developing self confidence/awareness through the martial arts. I just watched a 10-minute clip of Punk Payback and am surprised to report that it isn't this kind of show.  Instead, the episode I saw featured Rutten providing colorful commentary on how to resist/disarm armed...
2 comments
Read more

Getting Choked Unconscious

I got choked unconscious yesterday.  Don't worry, I wasn't a victim of a serial strangler.  Instead, I fell victim to a bow-and-arrow-choke (see below), a nasty submission move in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. I've been training Brazilian Jiu Jitsu (BJJ) for the past 6 months.  I love it.  I haven't loved a physical sport/activity as much since I first got into popping, back in 1999.  I train about 5-6 times per week at Balance Studios in Philadelphia, PA.  I can't say enough good things about Balance Studios.  People are very friendly; the instructors are top-notch; the atmosphere is low-key and unpretentious; and to top if off, people are really good at BJJ!  World Champ, Ruben "Cobrinha" Charles does a bow-and-arrow choke Typically, classes begin with about 30 minutes of drilling techniques.  This is a part of class in which you pair off with someone and work on a series of techniques.  On some days, you learn a sequence of submission ...
Post a Comment
Read more