President's Perspective

The terrible tragedies this past spring at schools in Arkansas and Oregon will renew calls for greater gun control in the United States. From October 1997 to May 1998, fourteen teachers and students have been slain in US school shootings. The 220 million firearms in that country account for tens of thousands of fatalities and over 150,000 injuries each year.

For the first time ever during 1994, random killings in the US - linked to the proliferation of weapons on the streets, gangs and the drug trade - exceeded murders by relatives and acquaintances. According to the FBI, every American now has a realistic chance of murder victimization in view of the random nature the crime has assumed. Canadians visiting the US need to beware.

Problems associated with easy access to firearms are well documented. Despite the gun lobby claim that "guns don’t kill, people do," there is general consensus among police, public health and safety experts that access to guns is a major factor in gun-related crime, accidents and suicides, and that stricter gun control will save lives and prevent injuries. Failure by our southern neighbor to exercise any effective control of firearms continues to thwart the efforts of those working in criminal justice, health and safety. Moreover, the increase in irrational shooting incidents has generated a profound fear of murder victimisation.

Gun control is a public health concern that affects safety and mental health as well as crime. Tougher legislation will not end all violent encounters. But limiting access to firearms reduces the likelihood that an assault will become a homicide, an attempted suicide will be completed, or a person will be unintentionally killed or injured.

While a motivated murderer will find a way to kill, guns are a particularly efficient method: 46 per cent of victims shot with guns will die. Guns are easy to use and rather impersonal. A less well-formed motive is required to shoot someone than to stab or beat someone to death.

Closer to home, in Nova Scotia, a father shot his two pre-teen sons and then killed himself on June 2 of this year. We understand the father owned an arsenal of weapons.

The bottom line is that ready access to guns makes it easier to kill.

Emile-J. Therien

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