CLAIM:
Guns are the leading cause of death for children, teens and young adults in America, with more than 4,000 children and teens shot and killed each year, 15,000 shot and wounded and an estimated 3 million exposed to shootings.
Key “findings” include:
- Four out of five young people believe that the level of gun violence our country is experiencing is a problem, and there is also broad agreement that stricter gun laws could help reduce gun violence. Forty-seven percent of young people surveyed believe restricting gun ownership will lead to fewer mass shootings, for example, and nearly 60 percent believe gun laws should be stricter than they are today.
- Young people have felt the impact of this crisis firsthand: the average young person in the United States knows at least one person who has been injured or killed by a gun. This has a direct effect on their mental health: the more people that youth know who were injured or killed by gun violence, the worse they reported their anxiety, depression, and post-traumatic stress symptoms to be.
- There has been an increasing amount of gunfire on school grounds, and gun violence and the threat of gun violence at school looms large in the minds of young people. One in four youth said they have experienced an active shooter lockdown somewhere, and youth who ruminate about school shootings tend to have more post-traumatic stress and report consuming greater average daily hours of gun-related media.
- Young people report having easy access to guns. About 40 percent of youth said they have at least “somewhat easy” access to a gun, with 21 percent reporting “very easy” access to a gun. In addition, nearly 17 percent of youth report that they plan to have access to a firearm in the future.
- The percentage of youth who agreed with the sentiment that guns protect minorities was highest among white respondents (35.8%), followed by Hispanic respondents (34.1%), and was lower for Black respondents (30.8% ) and Asian American and Pacific Islander respondents (19.4%).
REBUTTAL:
Rebuttal to Moms Demand Action’s Report on Youth Gun Violence and Firearm Ownership
The Moms Demand Action report, in collaboration with Everytown for Gun Safety, the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC), and the Polarization and Extremism Research and Innovation Lab (PERIL), makes several misleading claims about firearms, youth attitudes, and the impact of gun laws. Below is a detailed response highlighting where their arguments lack context, rely on flawed methodology, or misrepresent firearm-related data.
1. Misleading Claim: “Guns have been the leading cause of death for American children and teens since 2020.”
Rebuttal:
- This statistic artificially inflates the number of child victims by including 18- and 19-year-olds, who are legally adults and account for a significant portion of gang-related homicides.
- When looking specifically at children under 18, motor vehicle accidents remain the leading cause of death.
- The CDC’s WISQARS database shows that suicides and gang violence contribute more to gun-related deaths than mass shootings or accidents.
- Firearm deaths in minors (excluding 18-19-year-olds) have remained relatively stable for decades, meaning the “crisis” narrative is exaggerated.
Sources:
- CDC WISQARS Data, 2021
- National Safety Council (NSC) Report on Child Mortality, 2022
2. Misleading Claim: “Over 4,000 children and teens are shot and killed each year.”
Rebuttal:
- Suicides account for over 65% of these deaths, indicating mental health and lack of intervention are the primary issues, not firearm access.
- Many of these homicides are gang-related, primarily affecting inner-city youth involved in criminal activity.
- Accidental firearm deaths are statistically rare and have been declining due to increased firearm safety education.
Context Matters:
- Rather than pushing for bans on firearms, efforts should focus on expanding youth mental health resources, enforcing existing gun laws, and community intervention programs.
Sources:
- CDC Firearm Mortality Data (2021)
- Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Suicide Prevention Studies
- DOJ Gang Crime Reports
3. Misleading Claim: “There was a record amount of gunfire on school grounds in 2021.”
Rebuttal:
- Everytown for Gun Safety, which compiled this data, has been criticized for inflating school shooting statistics.
- Their definition of a “school shooting” includes incidents such as:
- Gunfire in parking lots after school hours.
- Domestic disputes involving firearms near school property.
- Gang-related violence that happens near a school but is not a school shooting.
- FBI and Secret Service reports show that actual active shooter events in schools are far lower than Everytown claims.
Sources:
- FBI Active Shooter Reports, 2022
- U.S. Secret Service National Threat Assessment Center, 2021
- Criticism of Everytown’s methodology by The Washington Post
4. Misleading Claim: “40% of youth say they have at least ‘somewhat easy’ access to a gun.”
Rebuttal:
- This is a self-reported survey, meaning respondents could be exaggerating or misinterpreting “easy access.”
- Federal and state laws already prohibit minors from purchasing or possessing firearms.
- Parental responsibility and secure firearm storage laws are more effective at preventing youth access to firearms than broad gun bans.
Alternative Solutions:
- Rather than pushing bans, policymakers should focus on responsible firearm ownership education and community-based safety programs.
Sources:
- Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) Federal Firearms Regulations
- National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF) Secure Firearm Storage Initiative
5. Misleading Claim: “22% of youth believe the Second Amendment gives individuals the right to overthrow the government.”
Rebuttal:
- The Founding Fathers explicitly designed the Second Amendment as a safeguard against government tyranny.
- Historical documents and Supreme Court rulings affirm that the right to bear arms was meant as a check against oppressive government actions.
- This does not mean armed insurrection, but rather ensuring citizens retain the ability to defend themselves against all threats, including government overreach.
Sources:
- Federalist Papers No. 46 (James Madison on an armed populace)
- District of Columbia v. Heller (2008) – SCOTUS affirmed the individual right to bear arms
6. Misleading Claim: “Stricter gun laws would help reduce mass shootings.”
Rebuttal:
- States with the strictest gun laws (California, Illinois, and New York) continue to experience high-profile mass shootings.
- The vast majority of mass shooters pass background checks, meaning gun bans and red flag laws wouldn’t have stopped them.
- Many of the worst mass shootings happened in “gun-free zones,” where law-abiding citizens couldn’t defend themselves.
Real Issues to Address:
- Improving mental health care access.
- Better law enforcement intervention with known threats (many mass shooters were previously reported to police but ignored).
- Strengthening existing background check enforcement.
Sources:
- Secret Service Report on Mass Attacks (2021)
- FBI Behavioral Analysis of Active Shooters (2022)
- DOJ Report on the Uvalde School Shooting (2023)
7. Misleading Claim: “Young people with easier access to guns tend to hold stronger beliefs that they are safer with guns.”
Rebuttal:
- This is a logical position backed by real-world defensive gun use (DGU) statistics.
- Defensive gun use occurs between 500,000 to 3 million times per year, often without shots fired.
- The CDC itself acknowledged that DGUs vastly outnumber firearm homicides.
Sources:
- CDC-Commissioned Study on Defensive Gun Use (2013)
- National Self-Defense Survey by Gary Kleck (1995, confirmed in later studies)
- Heritage Foundation Report on Defensive Gun Use (2021)
Final Takeaways:
The Moms Demand Action Report Misleads by:
- Conflating 18- and 19-year-olds with minors to inflate child gun death statistics.
- Failing to distinguish suicides from homicides when discussing “gun deaths.”
- Relying on Everytown’s flawed methodology to exaggerate school shootings.
- Ignoring defensive gun use data, which shows firearms prevent far more crimes than they cause.
- Framing gun laws as the solution, when enforcement of existing laws and mental health resources are more effective.
What Should Be the Real Focus?
🔹 Expand mental health resources for at-risk youth.
🔹 Strengthen enforcement of existing firearm laws against criminals.
🔹 Encourage responsible firearm ownership and storage practices.
🔹 Promote factual, data-driven discussions rather than emotional, agenda-driven narratives.