On this point, Americans from both sides of the political divide are in agreement: Gun violence must cease.
This week saw Charlie Kirk, co-founder of the conservative organization Turning Point USA, shot and killed while speaking at Utah Valley University. In June, Melissa Hortman, Speaker Emerita of the Minnesota House of Representatives, was shot alongside her husband in their residence. The same attacker also shot state Senator John Hoffman and his wife, both of whom survived. Last year, President Donald Trump was narrowly wounded by a bullet during a rally in Pennsylvania.
This compilation of victims, spanning both left and right political affiliations, continues to grow.
Many will attribute this to the extreme partisanship gripping the nation, and the hate-filled rhetoric that now substitutes for political discourse. And their assessment would be accurate.
However, we cannot disregard another evident factor: the normalization of firearms. Because while words can inflict pain, they are never fatal. Guns are—and those intent on destruction are aware of this.
The pervasive presence of guns in nearly every aspect of American life can be traced back to legislative decisions. Many states do not regulate the open carry of guns, meaning they can be worn on the hip or slung across the back. Twenty-nine states permit individuals to carry a concealed weapon without a permit. And in Utah, where Kirk was murdered, lawmakers recently amended the law to clarify that people can openly carry guns on college campuses, including students as young as 18 years old.
To be clear, when assessing the human toll of these widespread gun laws, political assassinations constitute a very small fraction. Approximately 46,000 Americans die annually from gun violence, and 97,000 more sustain injuries. It is young people who are bearing the , with gun violence now the for children and teens in America.
If yearly statistics seem too abstract, consider the 24 hours before Kirk’s death. In , a man reportedly shot his ex-girlfriend multiple times in a Walmart parking lot. In , a 10-year-old child was shot in the thigh by stray gunfire while sleeping. And at , two students were wounded by a classmate wielding a handgun, who then fatally shot himself. This incident marked the seventh K-12 shooting in an academic year that has barely commenced. Just last month, two children were killed at Annunciation Catholic School in while praying on the first day of school.
Only in America does an assassination appear simultaneously with a school shooting. What would profoundly shock any other nation has become our routine broadcast. That is the price we pay for prioritizing the Second Amendment above all else. And it need not be this way—we can protect gun rights while also safeguarding our families.
Because ultimately, this is not an ideological matter. President Donald Trump and Congress must collaborate to enact comprehensive gun laws to halt the bloodshed, thereby protecting both public figures and children.
Tragically, Kirk’s wife and children have now joined a group no one desires to be a part of, and one that transcends partisan divides: gun violence survivors. Until we act to keep guns away from individuals who should not possess them, that group will continue to expand.