The public health crisis of domestic violence is deeply interconnected with the widespread rise of gun violence in our communities. Over 4.5 million women in the U.S. have reported being threatened with a gun by an intimate partner. The presence of a gun makes it 5x more likely that a woman will die at the hands of a domestic abuser. Women of color are 3x as likely to be murdered with a gun than white women. Transgender women are 4x more likely to experience gun violence than cisgender women, and nearly 85% of transgender victims are women of color. Here in our neighborhood, nearly 15% of the gun violence patients seen in emergency rooms have intimate partner violence as an underlying cause.
These stats are both alarming and frustrating. Gun violence is preventable. However, true prevention requires systemic change through stricter and more comprehensive gun safety policies at all levels of government.
Next week, the U.S. Supreme Court will consider whether to hear an appeal of United States v. Rahimi and the Fifth Circuit’s court ruling that the law prohibiting people subject to domestic violence restraining orders violated the Second Amendment due to restrictive interpretations of historical support. We are watching the outcome of the Supreme Court’s consideration, with first the hope that the Court takes up the case and ultimately with the demand that the Court overturn this dangerous ruling.
We encourage you all to follow Moms Demand Action and Everytown for Gun Safety in their advocacy efforts to advance stronger gun laws and work to close technical loopholes that jeopardize the health and safety of our communities.
Sources:
New York Times, “Do People Subject to Domestic Abuse Orders Have the Right to Be Armed?”
Everytown for Gun Safety, Everytown Research and Policy on Domestic Violence
YWCA USA, Preventing Gun Violence