Mass shootings at schools and in other public places have become increasingly more common over the last few decades in the United States. Twelve mass shootings took place in the United States from 1982 to 1991. In the last ten years, 82 occurred. Discussions about gun regulations and rights have become common. Gun control is a contentious topic among Americans and a key point of difference between the Democratic and Republican parties.
According to a 2024 Pew Research Center survey, 51% of Americans say that it is more important to protect the right to own guns than it is to control gun ownership. However, 61% believe that it is too easy to legally obtain a gun in the country. How do Arcata High School students feel about the issue?
A strategy to curb the gun violence problem supported by the Democratic Party is a ban on the sale of assault weapons or high-capacity magazines. When students were asked how they felt about this proposal, most gave positive responses. Calleigh Lee, a freshman, said that she would support such a ban. “If another person didn’t have a gun, then you wouldn’t need a gun,” Lee said.
Hiro Sugata, a senior, agrees. “I don’t see where they’re being used for good.” Hiro is the co-lead of the local chapter of March for Our Lives, a student-led organization advocating for gun control legislation – including a ban on the sale of assault weapons and high-capacity magazines – in the United States.
“We do phone banking,” Hiro said. “We call people and say, ‘Hey, you should vote.’” (March for Our Lives has endorsed Kamala Harris in the 2024 presidential election.) “We have also organized some rallies… Letting people know, giving them the information that they need [is] really important because a lot of people, even myself, just don’t know as much as I feel like someone should know about these kinds of things.”
Aurora Pitts, another senior, said she thinks we should focus efforts on more politically practical measures first. “I think an assault rifle ban would be something that I would be in favor of, but that would be really difficult… probably because it’s so controversial,” Pitts said. “So I think just making it more difficult to get more dangerous weapons would be a good idea.”
James Dement, a freshman, said he would not support a nationwide ban on any kind of firearms. “I feel like that goes against the Second Amendment,” Dement said, referring to the Constitutional right of Americans to keep and bear arms. Still, although he supports it as a legal right, Dement said, “I don’t think people should own machine guns… Only the military should have that.”
Despite differing views on an assault weapons ban, all four interviewees expressed support for the Second Amendment. “That is a right that people should have because there’s many valid reasons why you would want to own a gun or carry a gun,” Pitts said.
Lee said that she worries about the possibility of gun violence at school but supports the right of responsible gun owners to keep their weapons. “Somebody deep in the woods, a hunter… They would be a lot less likely than just an average high schooler to shoot up a school.”
All students expressed support for making background checks more effective. “It’s too easy to access assault weapons that definitely should not be in the hands of people that are mentally unstable or have a criminal history,” Pitts said. Background checks are federally mandated, but a survey by Northeastern and Harvard universities found that about 22% of American gun owners report that they still acquired their guns without one.
Dement agreed that background checks should be more thorough, but emphasized that he doesn’t see guns themselves as the primary cause of gun violence. “I feel like it’s not the guns that are doing anything,” he said. “It’s the people that have the guns… I think it’s just really a mental thing. Why are you shooting up schools in the first place?”
Lee believes that bullying plays a large part in the rise of mass shootings at schools. “It gives people a rise… a ‘villain origin story’ to go ahead and try to do these acts of violence against either their oppressors or people they hate,” she said.
Although the students had a variety of perspectives on this issue, it was clear that these students shared a common concern for student safety, as well as a respect for the rights of Americans. If you care about this issue and are eligible to vote, you can make your opinion heard on November 5, election day.
