| Welcome back to The World Weekly, where we will be deconstructing the biggest news stories and placing the seemingly local developments in global context. This week we look at gun violence in the US in light of yet another mass shooting at a school in Nashville. The right to bear arms Gun violence is now so entrenched in American society that Monday’s mass shooting at The Covenant School, Nashville, was actually among 131 such incidents that have occurred in the US this year — that is in three months alone. A mass shooting is usually defined as an incident in which four or more people are injured or killed. In the last three years, there have been on average two mass shootings a day, according to figures from Gun Violence Archives, and they appear to be on the rise. In total, there have been 9,870 firearm-related deaths (including suicide) so far this year.  Last year the US Congress passed the first significant gun control bill in 30 years. It included reforms like tougher background checks for those under 21 and funding to states to implement “red flag” laws – that is, to remove firearms from people considered a threat. But the limited nature of the reforms was the equivalent of closing the windows, while leaving the front door open. Calls for stricter gun control have been repeated ad nauseam by presidents and victims alike. President Joe Biden signed an executive order to toughen background checks earlier in March. But even statistics — like guns being the leading cause of child and teen mortality in the country since 2020 — have failed to shock the US Congress into banning the weapons. A small survey from 2018 estimates that there were 390 million guns in circulation in the country, about 120.5 guns per 100 residents, that’s up from 88 per 100 in 2011. The Second Amendment The gun debate in the US is framed around the Second Amendment of the US Constitution, which protects the right to “keep and bear arms”. Anti-gun violence activists have argued that adding more restrictions like background checks can help reduce gun violence in the country, but pro-gun activists – usually Republicans – say that any such curbs will be a violation of their constitutional right. Gun advocates also argue that Americans should be able to possess guns so that they may protect themselves during such shootings. Extensive lobbying from organisations like the National Rifle Association have also significantly contributed to influencing government policy, or the lack thereof. Can the president pass an executive order banning guns? Well, technically, yes. But that doesn’t mean it will work. The order can be challenged in court as a violation of the Second Amendment. That doesn’t bode well for the president for three reasons. One, the Supreme Court has previously stymied what it considered legislative overreach from the Biden administration, suggesting that it may go that way again. Second, the court’s 6-3 current Conservative supermajority along with previous judicial precedents (See: New York law and Heller ruling) make it much more likely that the court will rule in favour of individual gun rights. Third, even though 57% Americans support stricter gun control, issuing an executive order, especially on such a divisive issue, could be seen as undemocratic and tank support for Biden at a time when Democrats are struggling to keep control of the White House and Congress.  Protesters gather inside the Tennessee State Capitol to call for an end to gun violence and support stronger gun laws after a deadly shooting at the Covenant School in Nashville, Tennessee. (REUTERS) Exporting gun violence Violence from US guns has also seeped beyond its borders. Between 2014 and 2016, 50,133 guns recovered in criminal investigations across 15 countries in North America, Central America and the Caribbean were of American origin. “Put another way, during this span, US-sourced guns were used to commit crimes in nearby countries approximately once every 31 minutes,” a Beyond Our Borders report said. Police data in Trinidad shows that the US states of Georgia, Maryland, and Florida are the main smuggling origins for guns in the country. Mexican foreign affairs secretary Marcelo Ebrard said last year that around 60% of all weapons seized in the country were purchased in 10 counties along the US border . In 2021, an article in the Guardian noted that the Mexico believes that more than two million US guns crossed into the country in the decade prior. A large majority of these guns were purchased legally in the US before being diverted to criminal groups and cartels after crossing the border. The Mexican government is trying, at the moment, to enlist Caribbean nations in its efforts to sue American gun manufacturers for fuelling violence in their countries. Canada, where guns are federally regulated, is also seeing a rise in gun violence. “86% of crime handguns [that are] able to be sourced were from the United States,” Toronto Police service deputy chief Myron Demkiw told Canadian parliamentarians during hearings last year. The problem however is not limited to illicit weapons, but also includes firearm parts, such as Glock barrels and slides. "These parts are being used to manufacture the untraceable ghost guns that we see being used in our gang conflicts," according to Vancouver Police Staff Sgt Michael Rowe. It's not like a weapons ban has never existed in the US. An assault weapons ban enacted in 1994 expired in 2004. There have been several efforts to renew the ban, but critics argue that there is limited data regarding the effectiveness of the ban. If US lawmakers want data, maybe they should look across the world at countries where a ban on guns has effectively ended mass shootings. Of course, for it to be truly effective, the law has to be an extensive, bipartisan effort – something that looks entirely unlikely in the current state of politics. That's all for this week, folx. If you have any suggestions, feedback, or questions, please write to me at sanya.mathur@hindustantimes.com | 
