BY NAMITA SINGH.
We’re only sixteen weeks into 2018, and there have already been over two dozen shootings in the USA. Support for stringent gun control laws is mounting in the United States of America. Nearly 7 in 10 adults now support stricter gun laws, which is the highest level of support in five years. Yet only half of Americans believe elected officials will strengthen them.
The United States of America has had more mass shootings than any other country. Between 1966 and 2018, over 300 mass shootings have occurred across the world: 110 of them—36% of the total—took place in the U.S.A. In the recent Parkland, Florida school shooting incident, at least 17 people died after a 19-year-old ex-pupil opened fire at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School.
The political aftermath of U.S. mass shootings has followed a similar script in recent years. Various presidents have expressed their anger and sorrow, declaring that none of their successors should have to confront the victims of another massacre. Then, little to no significant political change happens.
A major factor for the stasis in Washington on gun control is the powerful National Rifle Association (NRA). The NRA is one of the most powerful forces in one of the most hotly debated issues in the US: gun control.
What is the NRA?
NRA stands for National Rifle Association. The group was founded in 1871 as a recreational group designed to “promote and encourage rifle shooting on a scientific basis.”
The NRA’s path into political lobbying began in 1934 when it started mailing members information about upcoming firearms bills. This political influence expanded significantly following the passage of the Gun Control Act (GCA) in the late 1960s.
The NRA’s main focus is to advocate for the Second Amendment right to gun ownership and to generally oppose new restrictions on firearms. The NRA’s approximately 5 million members make it a powerful force in Congress and electoral politics. Its core membership is highly supportive of gun rights and serves as a vital voting bloc in many elections.
Why is it controversial?
The NRA has lobbied heavily against almost all forms of gun control, arguing specifically that more gun laws make the country less safe. It employs staff strategically, lobbying legislators and communicating with citizens on the right to bear arms.
The association faced criticism from both sides of the political spectrum in the wake of the Sandy Hook shooting, when CEO Wayne LaPierre suggested that the presence of an armed guard at the school was the only reason to believe such a tragedy could be stopped.
A repeal of the Second Amendment, which some gun owners view as sacred, is not a priority for groups such as Everytown for Gun Safety, Sandy Hook Promise, and the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence. These groups have instead prioritized legislative solutions such as universal background checks, extreme-risk protection laws, and restrictions on magazine capacities and assault weapons sales.
Support for new gun laws in the US has risen to historic highs following recent mass shootings in Sutherland Springs, Texas; Las Vegas, Nevada; and Parkland, Florida.
How big is its budget?
The NRA spends about $250 million per year, far more than all the country’s gun control advocacy groups put together. However, the NRA has a much larger membership than any of those groups and disburses funds for things such as gun ranges, educational programs, and political lobbying.
Will reform be successful?
A “constitutional amendment to get rid of the Second Amendment would be simple and would do more to weaken the NRA’s ability to stymie legislative debate and block constructive gun control legislation than any other available option,” wrote retired Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens, referring to the National Rifle Association.
Every time there is a serious attack involving guns, the arguments about the country’s gun laws start again. Even if a president in America thought the laws should be changed right now, they simply cannot change the laws on their own. They need a lot of support from other politicians, who often don’t agree.
Barack Obama, who was president of the US before Donald Trump, said that his inability to deal with gun control was the greatest frustration of his time in the job.
Donald Trump has stated he supports gun owners’ rights. “Let me make a simple promise,” Mr. Trump said in April 2017. “I will never, ever infringe on the right of the people to keep and bear arms.”
Ultimately, people right across America cannot agree on what should happen and it’s highly unlikely they are going to agree anytime soon, which is a frightening prospect for many.