Firearms are a growing issue in the United States of America because there is such easy access to guns. More than 100,000 people are shot every year in the United States of America, according to the Brady Campaign. Gun shops allow people to purchase guns without a thorough background check or a license. Also, people are sell guns in the streets illegally.  Minors purchase guns illegally from law abiding citizens. In order to reduce the amount of gun violence, there must be stricter gun control laws limiting who buys even in a private transaction. Also, there should be restrictions on who sells guns and the types of guns people can have.
In order to reduce the number of shooting deaths, we must make it more difficult to buy guns. The Brady Campaign says, “On average, thirty-two Americans are murdered by guns everyday” (Brady Campaign). If we require every gun shop to do thorough background checks on every buyer; even with private transactions, then we can prevent some criminals from purchasing guns.

The reason why gun control laws in the United States do not work is that nobody is enforcing them. The article “Should US Gun Control Laws Be Strengthened?” states, “Indeed, supporters insist, if stricter gun laws had been in place, many infamous acts of violence might never have taken place” (Should US gun control laws be strengthened?). The reason many tragedies took place is because of America’s lax gun control laws. Chicago has the strictest gun laws, but still has the highest murder rate because those laws aren’t being enforced, yet they still want to pass new laws.
Deadly mass shootings could have been prevented if there were stricter gun-control laws that prevent people from buying certain guns like assault weapons. Assault weapons are guns people in the military use and ordinary people should not have them. The article “Should US gun control laws be strengthened?” states, “Indeed, supporters insist, if stricter gun laws had been in place, many infamous acts of violence might never have taken place”(Should US gun control laws be strengthened?). The reason many tragedies took place is because of America’s lax gun control laws. Tragedies like the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting, where Adam Lanza shot and killed 26 people with a rifle and two handguns, and the Columbine High School shooting where Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold killed 13 people using two handguns, a rifle, and a shotgun are two incidents where semi-automatic guns were used. Regular people should not even have the types of guns used in these shootings because those types of guns are used in war. Also, I think that school police should be armed as another way to prevent school shootings like these. Stricter gun control laws will prevent mentally unstable people from buying guns. The shooting at Virginia Tech where a mentally ill man opened fired killing multiple people. Also, the shooting at Fort Hood where a soldier killed other soldiers. Police say that he could have been mentally ill.

People that oppose stricter gun control laws may argue that guns are for protection and the majority of people in the United States who buy or use guns are law abiding citizens. The widespread availability of guns has made it easier for criminals to get guns. Opposers also may are that gun control laws is a violation of the second amendment. Yet, the second amendment does not limit the government to controlling the number of guns in the United States and preventing dangerous or mentally ill people from getting guns. The right to bear arms is guaranteed to members of a militia, not to the people (Should gun control laws be strengthened?).
Firearms are a growing problem in the United States. There must be stricter gun control laws limiting who buys guns and the types of guns sold. Controversy over guns will likely continue even if new laws are passed. We must take the necessary actions to make the United States of America a safer country. The government needs to enforce the gun control laws in order for the United States to be safe.

Works Cited

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"Columbine High School." News. N.p., n.d. Web. 26 Oct. 2014. Print.

"Columbine High School." News. N.p., n.d. Web. 26 Oct. 2014. Print.

"Does the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution Guarantee an Individual Right to Bear Arms?" N.p., n.d. Web. Print.

"Infobase Learning - Login." Infobase Learning - Login. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 Oct. 2014. Print.

"Just the Facts: Gun Violence in America." NBC News. N.p., n.d. Web. 26 Oct. 2014. Print.

"SCHOOL OBAMA'S DAUGHTERS ATTEND HAS 11 ARMED GUARDS." The Southern Eclectic: Gun Control. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 Oct. 2014. Print.

"Infobase Learning - Login." Infobase Learning - Login. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Nov. 2014. Print.