Gun Control

Is Your Opinion on Gun Rights Dependent on Your Parents Ownership of Guns?

INTRODUCTION

Always a heated topic on the political scene in America, the issue of gun control has been especially escalading in the past few years. There have been increased scenes of violence by guns, ranging from school shootings to violence by law enforcement. All around, gun control has become a more discussed issue than ever before. As a result, I have chosen to study what influences personal opinions on gun rights, specifically focusing on childhood exposure. I am basing my research on the assumption that the presence of guns in the family unit is the most influential factor on this controversial topic. We fear things unknown, for the reason that we do not understand them; we are not afraid of the things that we can explain. Having been raised around guns, I have been taught how to safely handle them and to treat them with respect. Possessing knowledge on how they operate and function has eliminated the fear of the weapon itself in my own life. The ability to see guns without this fear allows for a greater incentive to fight for your right to possess them.

A recent study conducted by Rich Moran through Pew Research Center, examined the demographics and politics of gun-owning households. This study found that Americans with young children in their home are just as likely as other adults to have a gun in their household. It also suggests another interesting finding from the data: while blacks are significantly more likely than whites to be gun homicide victims, blacks are only about half as likely as whites to have a firearm in their home – 41 percent compared to 19 percent (Moran 2014). These findings are relevant to my research topic, because they look at the factors around the family unit that influence opinions towards gun control. This evidence supports my research topic by showing (1) the amount of gun-owning households does not varying depending on children within the...