A University of Michigan study found that Firearms were, in USAthe first cause of death in children and adolescents during 2020, surpassing traffic accidents for the first time.
According to the research, made with data from the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and published last week in the New England Journal of Medicine, 45,222 Americans died by firearm discharges in 2020, including 4,300 under 19 years.
Instead, the road accidents, which had always been the first cause of death of minors, caused around 3,900 deaths among children and adolescents in 2020.
That year, the study detailed, there was an increase in gun deaths of minors of fire compared to 2019 29.5%more than double the relative increase among the general population.
deaths from drug overdosemeanwhile, increased by more than 83% from 2019 to 2020, to more than 1,700 deaths in total, to become the third cause leading cause of death in this group.
Among the causes of death by firearms, the homicides which increased 33.4% since 2019. suicides related to firearms, on the other hand, increased 1.1% during that period.
Carrying arms in the United States, which is guaranteed by the Constitution, is object of permanent debate in society due to the shootings that occur daily throughout the country. However, the powerful lobby of the National Rifle Association (NRA) prevents any attempt to impose stricter regulations.
During his administration, former Democratic President Barack Obama (2008-2016) tried to limit the possession of weapons, but his successor, Republican Donald Trump (2017-2021), blocked all his initiatives. It is estimated that in the country 400 million weapons circulate, more than one per inhabitant.
