Many people believe that guns are important to our safety, and we would be safer with less strict gun control laws. Many other countries who have stricter restriction laws have much lower crime rates than the United States. The Constitution states, “A well regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed.” However, this has been misinterpreted, and there are guns that should not be in the hands of the public. Finally, the misuse of guns has caused a decline in numbers in numerous animal families, leaving many to become extinct. The use, production, and sale of guns should be banned in the United States of America.

One of the main reasons why we need a total ban of guns is because of the mass shootings that occur. In 1996, Australia there was a mass shooting by “a disturbed 28-year-old man named Martin Bryant” (Philips). The shooting killed roughly thirty-five people, which moved public opinion. People began to feel fear and people started to turn in guns. People turned in over 650,000 to the National Government. Because of this action, the gun homicide rate fell drastically. There was nearly a 50,000 gun related homicide descension. 18 years prior to the massacre at Port Arthur, “Australia experienced thirteen mass shootings” (Philips). In the ten years that preceded the shootings, there have been zero mass shootings. If the United States had stricter gun control laws, we can have the same remarkably low crime rate as Australia.

    In the 18 years leading up to and including 1996, the year in which guns were banned, “There were 8850 firearm suicides (annual average 491.7)” (Philips) The 7 years the followed the ban, “There were 1726 firearm suicides, an annual average of 246.6”(Philips). The annual gun related suicide rate has nearly halved since the ban of guns in Australia. Also, Australia is on pace to have 3.452 gun related suicides in 18 years since the ban. That is less than half of the suicides that occurred before the ban on guns.

    There are people who argue that they have a right to own guns because of The Second Amendment. They believe they need guns to help keep their family and loved ones safe. “The Second Amendment was not intended to be a license for mass murder” (Edelman). The Second Amendment was established to help protect you. People are misinterpreting it as a tool of murder, crime, and suicide, and must be stopped.
There are many who believe that the banning of guns will not impact the the crime rate. However, apart from Australia, there are many other countries that have stricter laws on legal use of guns, such as the United Kingdom. In 2011, the people who have been killed by guns per 100,000 people was at 0.23% (Alpers). In the United States in 2011, the people who have been killed by guns per 100,000 people was at a shocking high 3.6%. As the evidence shows, the banning of guns helps protect the citizens much more.

There are those who fear that the banning of guns will hurt us more than it will keep us safe, as criminals who do not follow laws will still find a way to get guns, and then we are left with nothing to protect ourselves with. However, the more steps we take in the right direction, the more influence we will have on a community as a whole. Once the outlaws of this generation are in prison, and have eventually passed away, the positive influence will help keep future generations safe.

The banning of guns is extremely important to the safety of our society and our loved ones. If there are not stricter laws put in place for gun restriction, there could very easily be many more crimes, including murder and robberies. Now is the time to act, and help make the society a safer place by enforcing stricter laws on the use of guns.

Works Cited

Philips, Matt. "15 Things to Know About Australia's Incredibly Effective Gun Clampdown." Www.nationaljournal.com. N.p., 18 Jan. 2012. Web. 14 Nov. 2014.
Web. 26 Oct. 2014.
Edelman, Marian Wright, and Larry Craig. "Is It Too Easy to Get a Gun in America?." New York Times Upfront (Vol. 140, No. 1 ). Sept. 3 2007: 28. SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 27 Oct. 2014.
Ives, Mike. "Rhino Horn Craze Threatens Species." Los Angeles Times. 08 Apr. 2012: A.3. SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 05 Nov. 2014.
Alpers, Philip, Marcus Wilson, Amélie Rossetti and Daniel Salinas. 2014. United Kingdom — Gun Facts, Figures and the Law. Sydney School of Public Health, The University of Sydney. GunPolicy.org, 31 July. Accessed 5 November 2014. at: http://www.gunpolicy.org/firearms/region/united-kingdom