Yes, the issue of school shootings have been a problem in the U.S. since 1999 when Columbine took place. Some think that the gun is the real issue. In my opinion, however, mental health plays a major role in school shootings; it’s not just the gun, it also depends on who is behind it. Everyone does not have the same degree of mental illness as the next one; but if we take away assault weapons from the dangerous ones, we can reduce the violence performed with guns.

If a person does not have access to a gun that inflicts a massive impact, it may deter the people who have the intention to cause harm in the first place. It is common sense that an assault rifle is more deadly than a handgun. According to NBC News, “The rifles fire at a higher velocity than handguns, which doctors who have treated mass shooting victims say produces much deadlier wounds.” The ban of assault weapons is one way to propose an end to gun violence, and it works hand in hand in understanding people’s motivations. In 1994 President Bill Clinton signed the Assault Weapon Ban, which restricted features on semi-automatic pistols, rifles and shotguns. In 2004 this ban expired and has not been passed since then. The use of assault rifles in major attacks like Sandy Hook and Parkland, however, both shootings with mental illness at the heart, and talks about the ban have risen in Congress--and they should pass them again.

Besides looking at weapon types, background checks can reveal someone’s employment, academic and/or professional qualifications, criminal records, financial standing and media searches. Daniel Webster who is a leading expert on gun violence and the director of the John Hopkins Center for Gun Policy and Research stated “Meanwhile, my research has shown that state universal background checks — along with other state laws designed to increase gun seller and purchaser accountability — significantly reduce the number of guns diverted to the illegal market.” Though some people like Senator Mike Lee believe “Checks would significantly restrict the the rights of law-abiding Americans while doing little or nothing to protect against further gun violence,” it’s just not the case.

With fewer assault weapons and stronger background checks, people will not be injured as badly because having guns around creates the conditions for violence. In 1998, a study by Researchers at the University of Missouri at Columbia revealed that guns create a “priming effect” on aggression that makes people process aggressive stimuli more rapidly than peaceful stimuli. Without guns, people with mental illness would not process as aggressively and therefore hopefully there would be fewer mass shootings.

Since 1999, school shootings have become a problem in the US. If we were to take certain precautions and change certain procedures as a community, we would reduce gun violence. Hopefully from 2018 and beyond we can make a change to reduce gun violence and become a safer nation.