by Sandy & Lonnie Phillips
As parents of a daughter fatally shot in the 2012 Aurora, CO theater mass shooting, we urge Vice President Harris to continue a frank discussion about gun ownership to help quell the current scourge of US gun violence.
Vice President Harris’s conversation about gun ownership, which began during her interview with Oprah Winfrey, continued Monday night with Harris’s interview on CBS’s “60 Minutes.” The Vice President reiterated her support for background checks for all gun sales and a ban on assault firearms, remarking that people can respect the right to bear arms but also support stronger gun laws. In short, Ms. Harris is discussing the aspects of responsible firearm ownership and responsibility within the firearms industry.
The conversation is of utmost importance now because gun violence is the leading cause of death of kids and teens in the United States (CNN) (AAP). Adding to the urgency is the all-time-high rate of firearm suicide in the U.S. (Johns Hopkins).
New gun owners might not understand the lesser-discussed side of gun ownership: suicides, unintentional shootings, firearm theft, domestic violence, homicide, femicide, familicide, and the increase in firearm-related crime in a community when an unsecured firearm is stolen or lost.
Defensive gun use is rare, despite beliefs among many existing and prospective gun owners that a gun will help them protect themselves and their families as addressed in a June 2023 New York Times article. In fact, according to studies from Johns Hopkins, “Overwhelming evidence shows that firearm ownership and access is associated with increased suicide, homicide, unintentional firearm deaths, and injuries.”
Vice President Harris has a national platform to set the example of responsible gun ownership, particularly for new gun owners. We urge her to discuss the need for secure firearm storage for all firearms, education about suicide prevention, and the need for gun owners to have regular hands-on firearm training.
Harris’s support of universal background checks is a critical step in increasing standards for gun ownership. Licensing will ensure better vetting for new gun owners. Banning assault weapons and high-capacity magazines will decrease the number of people killed or injured in shootings. The US can take other measures, including holding the arms industry responsible for selling practices that arm people who should not have firearms. The arms industry needs to shoulder the financial burden of firearm-related prosecutions and even payments made by Medicare or Medicaid for gunshot wounds—instead of making taxpayers pay the bill.
Secure gun storage reduces suicide in all age groups, prevents school shootings, and stops guns from being diverted to the criminal market.
Education about suicide prevention will also reduce suicide. The rate of suicide in all demographics continues to increase, with gun suicides representing 54% of the 53,366 suicides during the 2021-2022 period according to Gunviolencearchive.org. Studies clearly indicate that a firearm in the home increases suicide. Suicide is usually an impulsive act and most people who survive an initial suicide attempt will never try again. Most people who attempt suicide with a firearm will die from that attempt.
Training is also paramount for gun owners. Guns are not just “point-and-click” products but few states have any laws requiring prospective gun owners to have any training. When buying one of the most lethal products available to consumers, common sense indicates that training should be mandatory.
Will that gun protect your family or be used to kill someone you know? Studies show that a firearm in the home doubles the risk that someone in that home will die of homicide and triples the risk that someone will die of suicide. Furthermore, the evidence of self-defensive gun use is largely based on bad data that has been debunked for years by top scientists. Don’t believe it? Look at the larger picture: the US has an estimated 400 million firearms in civilian hands but we have very high rates of suicide, homicide, femicide, and school shootings.
Among other measures, the Biden Administration has made significant strides to stem gun sales made by unlicensed dealers over the past two years—working closely with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms (ATF). The Bipartisan Safer Community Act passed in 2022 expanded gun purchase background requirements.
On April 11, 2024, the Administration announced final plans “to expand requirements to perform background checks for those who buy firearms at gun shows or online, aiming to effectively close what gun control advocates have long referred to as the ‘gun show loophole,’” according to CBS News. “The new federal rules… expand the definition of licensed firearms dealers. This move will also sharpen existing enforcement measures to ensure that the background screenings — which have not traditionally been necessary at certain gun sale locations — are carried out in more circumstances.”
Because of ongoing Administration moves in concert with the ATF, the Wall Street Journal announced in August 2023 that “the Biden administration is revoking licenses from hundreds of firearms dealers in a significant escalation of federal enforcement actions…The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives has revoked the licenses of 122 gun dealers in the fiscal year that began in October, up from 90 for all last fiscal year and 27 in 2021…The Trump and Obama administrations never revoked more than 81 dealers’ licenses annually since at least 2013, the earliest year for which data are available.”
In addition, US Senators have before them a strong, comprehensive gun violence prevention bill submitted in December 2023 by Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) and Senator Hank Johnson (D-GA). The bill includes universal background checks, a ban on assault firearms, and a program for Extreme Risk Protection Orders. Furthermore, the Warren-Johnson bill includes evidence-based measures that have been shown to reduce gun violence including: licensing, increasing standards of gun ownership, increasing security standards of licensed arms dealers, banning unserialized and undetectable firearms, and removing the Tiahrt Amendment that hampers firearm tracing.
We thank Vice President Harris for this dialogue and we recognize the need to continue the progress she and President Biden have made in preventing gun violence. We look forward to robust and comprehensive action to implement evidence-based laws and policies that address gun violence—the leading killer of US kids.