Conservatives like to paint Democratic states as crime-ridden warzones, but gun violence is worse in red states

The Independent
July 27, 2022
by Josh Marcus

You would think, hearing many prominent Republicans discuss America’s gun violence epidemic, that most shootings only occur in large cities in Democratic states like Los Angeles and New York, proving that gun laws make no difference, or that Black Lives Matter protests had somehow led to an end of effective policing. …

… Rural America, which struggled with economic challenges, mental health, and social dislocation just as much as anywhere else during the pandemic, saw nearly the same spike in homicides as cities did in 2020, with deaths rising by 25 percent, the largest increase since CDC began tracking the figure. …

… And it’s a trend that’s been a long time coming.

Between 2008 and 2014, 21 of 33 states with sufficient gun violence data showed equal or greater gun violence in rural areas compared with large metro areas, according to an analysis from the John Jay College of Criminal Justice — even in favoured GOP punching bags like Californa and Illinois.

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