A large group of students chanted “Hey, hey, NRA, how many kids did you kill today?” as they walk out of class April 20th, 2018. They were protesting assault rifles on the 19th anniversary of the Columbine High School shooting. Because many people are protesting guns, one would think there is no question that they are dangerous, but there is also evidence that supports that they could be an answer.

1) The Washington Post states 79%, or 8/10 cases of shooters use someone else’s gun: family, friend, or co-worker. Sometimes people loan guns to others, and sometimes they steal them. However in the recent Parkland, FL shooting, the shooter did own his weapons, but his family and friends knew he should not have owned any guns due to mental illness and should have talked to the local law enforcement about it.

I do not understand the idea of loaning a gun to anyone. There are very few situations that I would. Even if you know the person from work or as a friend, there is still a lot you may not know about them, and no one should take that risk with a gun.

2) The Heritage Foundation states that gun ownership has risen significantly, yet violence, especially gun violence, has lowered significantly in the latest years. It may be hard to believe, but it is true. In 1993, for 100,000 people there were 7 homicides committed by a gun. Then in 2013, that is almost half. About 3.6 per 100,000. Also in Switzerland and Israel, there is have a much high gun ownership rate, and they experience much lower crime rates than the rest of Europe.

Maybe gun ownership does not directly correspond with the violence rates dropping, but it shows that criminals are afraid of people with guns, and when they see a gun, they will run.

3) The Daily Wire states that 98% of mass shootings happen in gun free zones. This includes schools, airports, courtrooms, federal buildings, and large public events(concerts, speeches, etc). Perhaps this means that having access to guns in these areas would deter shooters.

While many disagree with this idea, and I agree with them in some respects it is worth considering that guns (either in the hands of civilians or law enforcement) could have an effect on crime in these traditionally gun free zones.