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The Truth About Gun Violence: Three Facts You Need to Know
Sixty-seven people die by firearm suicide daily — more than the deadliest mass shooting in American history happening every single day.
The numbers don’t lie. Gun violence remains our national shame.
This month, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released new data related to firearm deaths. The numbers were heartbreaking — nearly 40,000 Americans died by gun violence in 2018 — but unfortunately, they were not surprising. Despite a minimal decrease in overall firearm deaths from 2017, gun violence continues to take an enormous toll on our society.
In a new analysis of the 2018 data, our affiliate, The Educational Fund to Stop Gun Violence, released Gun Violence in America: An Analysis of 2018 CDC Data. Below are some key findings from the report:
- The number of firearm suicides reached a record high in 2018.
Suicides comprise the majority of gun deaths in the United States. The newly-released CDC data shows there were 578 more firearm suicide deaths in 2018 compared to 2017, continuing a trend of annual increases since 2006. Notably, for the first time, the number of firearm suicide deaths in a year exceeded 24,000. That record-high number:
