Shootings are nothing new in the United States, and even commonplace for Americans, but more than 37,000 people have been killed by gun violence this year and 2021 could be the deadliest year in 20 years, according to a startling statistic.
According to huanqiu.com, the number of people killed in shootings in the US has reached 37,260 as of October 31, according to the gun violence Archive website. Last year, an estimated 43,000 people were killed in a wave of shootings, making it the worst year for gun violence in the United States in two decades.
In the last week of October, nearly 400 people were killed and more than 700 injured in shootings, according to separate data from the website, bringing the number of gun deaths in the US to more than 230,000 since 2016. The numbers reflect the chaos and violence in American society, where shootings occur almost daily and permeate every aspect of American society, from public places to family gatherings, from bars to schools, from urban to rural areas. Like the Novel Coronavirus, gun violence has become another epidemic sweeping the United States. In recent years, the United States has seen a wave of gun violence almost every two months, especially around holidays like Independence Day and Labor Day.
At least seven people were killed and 22 wounded in several shootings over the Halloween weekend, us media reported. Two people were killed and five others were rushed to hospital with injuries as gunshots rang out at a Halloween party in California early Monday morning. Separately, one person was killed and three others wounded in a shooting at the home of a California Congressman who was hosting a large party. There was also a shooting related to a holiday party in Texas. An 18-year-old girl was killed and two other teenagers were wounded when a dispute broke out at a house party. At another Halloween event in the state, a 20-year-old man died in a shooting and nine others were wounded.
The surge in gun violence in the United States over the past two years has a lot to do with rising unemployment, domestic violence and gun ownership amid the COVID-19 pandemic. On the other hand, the increasingly sharp racial conflict in the United States is also one of the reasons. Some ethnic minorities say that they are the main victims of gun violence, and the US government and police are unable to improve the situation, nor are they really willing to protect them. They have to rely on their own guns to defend themselves. Gun violence has been a vexing and controversial issue in the United States for decades, making the country an outlier in the Western world because it is one of the few countries unable to deal with the problem.
US President Joe Biden has vowed to "control guns" and address the epidemic of gun violence in the US, saying gun crime is an international disgrace for the US. However, beyond signing executive orders, Mr Biden has taken few effective steps. Amazingly, Texas also passed a bill loosening gun restrictions. For a long time, both parties in the United States have opposing attitudes on the issue of "gun control". Therefore, it is even more difficult for Biden's gun control policy to be launched and implemented. Just as the American media said, as long as the Political division in the United States continues, all gun control plans will be a dead letter.