US gun deaths at 28-year high, report says

Between 1990 and 2021, more than 1 million Americans were killed by firearms

People visit a memorial for a shooting at a Walmart in Chesapeake, Virginia, in which seven people, including the gunman, were killed. Getty Images / AFP

As the coronavirus pandemic swept the world, killing millions over the course of two years, another deadly pandemic was wreaking havoc in the US.

Firearms were responsible for the deaths of more than 48,000 people in 2021, a new study published in medical journal the Jama Network showed — a 25 per cent increase compared to 2019.

In the past three decades, more than one million people have been killed by firearms, according to the study, which relied on data compiled by the US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention.

“The first thing that just jumps off the page to me is just the magnitude of how many individuals have lost their lives and we're talking about mothers, fathers, sons, daughters, grandparents, aunts, uncles,” Chris Rees, co-author of the report and assistant professor of emergency medicine at Emory University, told The National.

The report found stark racial disparities in those killed by gun violence, with young black men being significantly more likely to be killed than those belonging to other groups.

“The numbers and the differences are just almost incomprehensible in terms of these ratios,” Eric Fleegler, co-author of the study and associate professor of paediatrics and emergency medicine at Harvard Medical School, told The National.

“One of the things we found was that the highest fatality rates among young black men, at 141 per 100,000, just dwarfs the fatality rate compared to white males.”

Both authors stressed that these deaths were “preventable” and reflect a broader problem in the country that needs to be addressed.

“These are not deaths that needed to occur,” Dr Fleegler said.

“The problems in our country, whether it comes to depression and mental health or violence in general, are actually not that different from any other country around the world.”

While the greatest increase in gun-related deaths occurred during the pandemic, the authors found the death rate overall has doubled since 2014.

The US has long struggled with gun violence and mass shootings — defined by an incident in which three or more people are shot and killed, excluding the gunman — have plagued communities across the country.

President Joe Biden has repeatedly called on Congress to pass a bill banning the assault-style rifles often used in mass shootings, including in Colorado Springs, when a gunman used an AR-15-style weapon to kill five people at a nightclub.

That was the sixth mass shooting in the US this month. There have been at least 611 this year.

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  Alanna De Leon writes the name of her friend, Annabelle Rodriguez, who died in the shooting. AFP

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  Pallbearers carry the coffin of Amerie Jo Garza into Sacred Heart Catholic Church. AP

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  Pallbearers carry the coffin of Amerie Jo Garza, who died in the mass shooting at Robb Elementary School. AFP

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  A memorial in Town Square, Uvalde, Texas, for victims of the Robb Elementary school shooting. Reuters

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  A woman places a rose on Layla Salazar’s memorial cross, who was one of the victims that died in the shooting. Reuters

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  Bags with brisket sandwiches and a snack that will be sold at a fundraiser for families of the victims. Reuters

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  Ashtyn Leigh, 18, hands a man a brisket meal. Reuters

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  A choir sings in front of the memorial. Reuters

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  People pray in front of memorial crosses. Reuters

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  Nineteen children and two adults were killed in the shooting. AFP

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  People visit a memorial for the victims. AFP

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  Flowers are left outside the school. AFP

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  Twenty-one empty chairs are seen outside of a daycare center as a memorial for the victims. AP Photo

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  Football teammates of Tess Mata, who died in the Texas school shooting, cry as they visit a makeshift memorial outside the Uvalde County Courthouse. AFP

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  A football teammate of shooting victim Tess Mata cries, supported by her mother. AFP

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  Texas police faced angry questions over why it took an hour to stop the gunman who murdered 19 children and two teachers in Uvalde, as video emerged of desperate parents begging officers to storm the school. AFP

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  Activists join Senate Democrats outside the Capitol, in Washington, to demand action on gun control legislation after the killings at the Texas elementary school this week. AP

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  The George R Brown Convention Centre, site of the National Rifle Association annual convention. Days after the deadliest mass school shooting in Texas history, the gun lobbyist group is meeting in Houston, from Friday until Sunday. Reuters

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  Pastor Carlos Contreras preaches to his congregation as photos of some of the children killed in the mass shooting at Robb Elementary flash on the screen at Primera Iglesia Bautista, in Uvalde. Reuters

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  People march after a vigil held to stand with the Uvalde families and demand an end to gun violence in Newtown, Connecticut. AP

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  A woman holds up a banner at the end of the vigil in Newtown, Connecticut. AP

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  Newtown was the scene of the 2012 attack at Sandy Hook Elementary School, when 20 pupils and six teachers were killed by a gunman. AP

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  Candles are lit for each victim as people pray at St Philip's Episcopal Church. EPA

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  A makeshift memorial in front of Robb Elementary School. AFP

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  Omahar Padillo with his son Omahar Jr, 12, during a community prayer, in Pharr, Texas, for the shooting victims at Robb Elementary School. AP

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  Omahar Padillo Jr, 12, and his sister Samantha, 9, with their mother, Silvia Padillo, write messages in support of the victims at Robb Elementary School. AP

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  A vigil for the victims of the mass shooting at Robb Elementary School. AFP

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  A young mourner at the vigil in Uvalde, Texas. AFP

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  Families at the vigil. AFP

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  A woman holds a photo of Nevaeh Bravo, who was killed in the mass shooting, during a vigil for the victims of the massacre in Uvalde, Texas. AFP

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  Uvalde County Sheriff Ruben Nolasco is comforted by Senator Ted Cruz during a vigil at the Uvalde County Fairplex Arena. AP

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  Diana Karau of Uvalde with a therapy dog named Tritan before a vigil to honour those killed at Robb Elementary. AP

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  Gun-control advocates Dana Cibulski, left, and Judi Giannini attend a vigil outside the National Rifle Association headquarters in Fairfax, Virginia after the mass shooting in Uvalde, Texas. AFP

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  Uziyah Garcia, 8, was among those killed in the shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas. AP

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  Pastor Jaime Cabralez, the uncle of shooting victim 10-year-old Eliahana Cruz Torres, is surrounded in prayer at his church in Uvalde, Texas on Wednesday. Reuters

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  A woman embraces a child outside Willie de Leon Civic Centre, in Uvalde, where pupils were taken after the school shooting. Bloomberg

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  Gun-control advocates hold a vigil outside the National Rifle Association (NRA) headquarters in Fairfax, Virginia. AFP

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  A woman and child leave the Civic Centre. Reuters