Almost 1,700 kids and teens were killed by guns in the US in 2023

In 2023 a total of 1,699 kids and teenagers were killed by a gun in the US, according to the Gun Violence Archive.

Moreover, a total of 4,527 (641 children and 3,886 teenagers) were injured by a gun, according to the database. 

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The Gun Violence Archive also shows that so far this year, a total of 252 kids and teenagers have been killed by a gun.

Moreover, the database shows that 558 children and teenagers have been injured by guns so far in 2024.

In 2020, gun-related incidents became the No. 1 cause of death for US children and adolescents, surpassing car accidents, the previous leading cause of death for this groups,  according to the CDC.

Researchers at the University of Michigan found that while firearm-related deaths overall increased 13.5% between 2019 and 2020, among children and adolescents they surged 30%, CNN reported.

Though school shootings tend to get the most attention, they only account for a fraction of all gun-related deaths of kids and teens. The dangers young people face from firearms in America go well beyond that.

Though the researchers were cautious to prescribe any one explanation for this trend, they do acknowledged that the Covid-19 pandemic could have contributed to the uptick in firearm-related deaths of kids and teens in 2020.

Possible drivers include the psychological and economic strain due to the pandemic and the greater time spent at home (where guns are often kept) during school closures, researchers told CNN.

Photo: Kelly Sikkema/Unsplash

According to the Brady Campaign to End Gun Violence, on average, more than 1,600 children and teens died of a gunshot wound each year between 2015 and 2019.

Of those who died, 52% were murdered, 40% died from gun suicide and 5% were killed unintentionally.

A study published in 2021 in JAMA Network showed that, in 134 suicide cases where guns were used, children obtained the firearm from their home.

Photo: Craig Tidball/Unsplash

Furthermore, school shooters, have also gotten guns from their homes. In 2012, the shooter at Sandy Hook used his mother's gun to kill her and 26 children and school staff members, several media reported.

In fact, research published in 2021 shows that over 80% of mass school shooters stole guns from family members.

"The findings support safe storage of guns," the authors write. But as the analysis points out, "there are no federal laws requiring safe storage of guns, and no federal standards for firearm locks."

Last year a 6-year-old student brought a gun into his classroom and intentionally shot and wounded his teacher. Federal prosecutors said the firearm was purchased by his mother. ATF agents never found a lockbox, a trigger lock, or a key for the gun, prosecutors said.

Whether it's the gun violence they face in their neighborhoods, school or mass shootings, suicide or accidents at home when guns are left unsecured, the threat to America's children and teenagers is bad and worsening.

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When discussing gun-related injuries and deaths, the massive number of gun ownership in the U.S. can’t be overlooked…

Civilians in the U.S. own an estimated 393 million 347,000 firearms, according to a 2020 study by the Small Arms Survey.

In other words, nearly 46% of the estimated 857 million civilian-held firearms in the world is in the U.S., a striking proportion, given the U.S. has just 4% of the world's population.

Several student movements demanding stricter gun control have originated in recent years.

One of them, called March For Our Lives, held 450 marches worldwide, and lead to new state laws to curb gun violence, and the bipartisan Safer Communities Act, the first federal legislation on guns in 30 years.

Gun safety laws in the bipartisan bill include extended background checks for gun purchasers under 21 and funding for crisis intervention programs.

However, data shows that the problem keeps getting worse and so the ‘March for our Lives’ activists keep organizing rallies to demand more gun safety laws.