On January 5, eight lives were gained in one filmed in a small town in Utah.
A few days later, there were five filmed in a house in North Carolina.
And just a week later, six people, including a 10-month-old baby and a 16-year-old mother, were shot in California.
In the first month of 2023, there were at least 52 mass shootings, according to the data The Gun Violence Archivewhich tracks mass shootings in which there are four or more victims.
Two of the deadliest attacks occurred in California less than 48 hours away: the Monterey Park shooting that killed 11 and the Half Moon Bay massacre that left seven dead. These back-to-back shootings took place in densely populated areas in Asia; the attack on Monterey Park was carried out during a Lunar New Year celebration.
Then, before the end of the first month of the year, an armed man opened fire with an AR-15 style rifle at a Target store in Nebraska on Tuesday.
“The start of 2023 has brought seemingly constant violence, with more mass shootings than days. As devastating as it is, it’s far from surprising,” Mikah Rector-Brooks, press secretary for March for Our Lives, told HuffPost, adding that this brutality will only escalate without basic federal violence prevention legislation. with weapons.
The United States has seen more than 600 mass shootings every year since 2020, an average of nearly two shootings per day. In a country that has more guns than people in it, activists are devastated by the gun violence that has plagued the country. But they remain confident that 2023 will bring change at the state and federal level.
The United States has made progress in the past 10 years since the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting that killed 20 children and six adults on Dec. 14, 2012, said Peter Ambler, co-founder of the Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence.
In the wake of the massacre in Newtown, Connecticut, attempts were made to get Congress to pass a bill that would expand background checks for people who want to buy guns. was met with a Republican-led filibuster. A decade later, President Joe Biden’s administration is over Bipartisan Safer Communities Actwhich included $250 million in funding for community violence intervention programs, improved background checks for buyers under 21, and investments in mental health care for children and families.
Gun reform activists point out that it was also the first piece of federal gun violence prevention legislation to pass in 30 years.
“This was a huge step forward, but it’s the floor, not the ceiling, and there’s still a long way to go to get to a country without gun violence,” Rector-Brooks said.
Despite the victories, there were some unfortunate setbacks in the movement.
Two months after two consecutive mass shootings rocked the country in 2022, including a Targeted attack on Buffalo, New Yorkshopping story that killed 10 her horrific school shooting in Uvalde, Texasthat claimed the lives of 19 children and two adults: A US Supreme Court ruling has opened the door for more New York residents to legally carry a gun in public.
In June 2022, the Supreme Court decision in Rifle and Pistol Association of New York State vs. Bruen, effectively overturned New York’s 100-year-old concealed carry law, deeming it a violation of the Second Amendment.
New York law required people to provide “good cause” to obtain a license to carry a concealed firearm in public.
Provost-Brooks said that during the 2022 session of Congress, even senators missed a historic opportunity to pass a new bans assault weaponsstimulated by the growth of mass shootings involving rapid-fire AR-15 riflesadding that such a law would have saved lives.
“While I hope members of Congress are fulfilling their responsibilities — keeping their constituents safe — I can’t help but feel betrayed by their inaction before another mass shooting occurs,” Rector-Brooks said, adding, “A government divided . . it cannot be an excuse for inaction.
And this year could bring much of the same, thanks to the power of the gun lobby.
Despite big state and federal successes, the gun lobby has been able to implement dangerous policies in a number of states, Ambler said, such as rules that allow you to carry a gun without a permit, which allows almost anyone to carry a firearm in public. without undergoing a background check or training. Similarly, Congress has been unwilling to support actions to prevent gun violence because members such as Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) AND Representative. Steve Scalise (D-La.) I am in the armory pocketsaid Kristen Ellingboe, director of communications for the Washington state-based Military Accountability Alliance.
“Without a majority to prevent gun violence in the House, progress in Congress is a gamble,” he told HuffPost.
Still, gun control advocates remain optimistic that Congress can enact meaningful reforms. But if faced with federal inaction, they say states will have to compensate.
For example, in the past decade, Washington state has added dozens of gun accountability laws, including three ballot measures that have passed, according to Ellingboe. Among the changes are a strengthened background check system, funding for community violence intervention and a higher age limit and stricter rules for purchasing semi-automatic assault rifles.
“We have an ambitious policy agenda for the 2023 state legislative session,” Ellingboe said. Priorities, he said, include banning the sale of military-grade assault rifles, creating a way for survivors of gun violence to seek redress in court and apply for a permit, safety training and a waiting period for gun purchases. fire.
Other states, including Colorado, Minnesota and Michigan, are expected to follow suit in advancing gun reform legislation this year.
“I hope that many states will follow the example of others, like Illinois, by taking matters into their own hands and passing state legislation to combat the epidemic of gun violence,” Rector-Brooks said. Illinois Governor JB Pritzker, a Democrat, signed a statewide ban on assault weapons and high-capacity ammunition magazines on January 10.
“Not only does this help this state, but it also creates the momentum to push even more at the federal level,” Rector-Brooks said.
Gun reform activists stress the importance of force universal background checks, funding for life-saving community violence intervention programs, investment in gun violence research, and follow-up action to disarm domestic abusers (among policies often referred to as red flag laws) and ban bump stocks (ban on trigger fast). was overturned on January 6 by an appeals court).
“I hope we can continue to build on the progress we’ve made and make this country safer. Gun violence has gone from being a third-party policy to a mainstream issue, and it’s clear that the vast majority of voters—Republicans and Democrats, gun owners and non-gun owners alike—want to see change on this issue.”, Ambler. said. .
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