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Gun violence is a multifaceted issue that will persist unless our elected leaders embrace targeted, evidence-based solutions that reasonably regulate firearms and address gun violence's various root causes.
Through persistent engagement with local, state, and federal legislatures and elected officials, we all have an opportunity to change the trajectory of gun violence in the U.S., save lives, and lay the foundation for lasting positive change.
Some solutions to reduce firearm suicide or unintentional shootings, for example, differ from solutions to reduce firearm homicide. And tools needed to prevent mass shootings often look different than those needed to prevent the diversion of firearms into the illegal market.
Even though gun violence’s various forms may require unique solutions, there is one thing all forms of gun violence have in common: interconnectivity with other social issues. Whether gun homicide, mass shootings, domestic violence, or suicide, all forms of gun violence undeniably intersect with many issues facing Americans today — systemic racism, sexism, voter suppression, subversion of democracy, and economic injustice, to name a few. To fully meet the challenges laid before us, we must consider the interconnected nature of these issues.
The Brady Background Check System has successfully prevented millions of prohibited purchases since its implementation, saving countless lives, but gaps in the law have arisen over the years. Expanding and strengthening this system is crucial to ensuring foundational support for all other gun laws.
In addition to being a life-saving and effective tool for family members to remove guns from a person in a mental or behavioral health crisis, extreme risk laws can potentially prevent mass or school shootings. While 21 states and Washington, D.C., have these laws, we must create a national standard.
No industry should be above the law, yet the gun industry is uniquely protected from oversight and accountability. We must repeal gun industry special protections and pass legislation that addresses the supply of guns into communities.
The strategies, policies, and methods necessary to prevent gun violence’s various forms require solutions tailored to each form’s root causes, and policymakers must account for the ways in which gun violence impacts every community differently.
While legislative action in Congress often feels stagnant, states and localities across the country continue to make progress. Each year, Brady works on hundreds of bills, providing expertise, testimony, and advocacy on state-level solutions to prevent gun violence. These efforts include both offensive and defensive strategies that recognize and meet the needs of diverse communities.
In both 2022 and 2023, state legislatures passed more than 30 Brady priority bills including universal background checks and permits to purchase, bans on assault weapons and large-capacity magazines, industry accountability and dealer code of conduct, ghost guns, and sensitive places restrictions, to name a few. Just as our policy team and grassroots advocate for gun violence prevention bills, we also oppose harmful legislation that exacerbates gun violence, including permitless carry and stand your ground laws. This work has had a meaningful impact on states across the country — making communities safer and saving lives.
A meaningful, long-term reduction of gun violence across America requires Congressional action. But the President of the United States also has the power to take immediate action against gun violence by leveraging executive power. Brady has created a list of recommended executive actions for the Biden-Harris administration, most of which have already been taken, including action on ghost guns, safe storage, investment in community violence intervention, and the establishment of the White House Office of Gun Violence Prevention.
Given the strong link between racial injustice, gender-based violence, and economic disadvantage and gun violence, it is essential to enact policies that both reduce gun violence and systemic disadvantage. For this reason, Brady works with community partners and experts to promote state, federal, and local policies that are evidence based and sufficiently tailored to save lives from gun violence without exacerbating disparities. Brady uses its reputation as a trusted expert to push lawmakers to enact creative solutions that address gun violence’s root causes and stop gun violence before it starts rather than reflexively relying on criminalizing traumatized communities after blood has been shed.
