Black youths in US suffer gun deaths in disproportionally high levels

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Reuters
20 Dec 2022 23:30

The rate of gun-related deaths per 100,000 American minors in 2020 was 5.2, but for the black community alone, it was recorded at 17.4 per 100,000.

Gun deaths in the US on the rise, especially affecting the Black community

A study published on Tuesday by the US National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities revealed that in the year 2020, a sharp rise in gun-related deaths among American youths has disproportionally affected children and teens of African American descent, accounting for 47% of deaths among children and teens despite representing only 15% of that age group.

According to data from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), gun violence exceeded motor vehicle accidents to become the leading cause of death among children and teenagers in the year 2020.

While examining gun fatality trends among Black and white children aged 1 to 19, and 2019-2020 data on Hispanic, Native American, Asian, and Pacific Island youths, researchers found that from 2013 to 2020, gun-related deaths increased by 108.3% among Black youths and by 47.8% for young whites.

The largest increase was reported between the years 2019 and 2020.

In that year alone, gun-related fatalities increased by 39.2% among Black youths vs. 16.4% for white youths.

Overall, the rate of gun-related deaths per 100,000 American minors in 2020 was 5.2, results showed.

But for the Black community, in particular, it was recorded at 17.4 per 100,000, and 9.1 among Native Americans.

The rate was 4.01 for Hispanics, 3.4 among whites, and 1.32 among Asian or Pacific Islanders, the research revealed.

Previous studies have found that tighter gun regulations were linked to lower estimates of gun-related deaths among youths.

This particular research did not examine possible reasons for the results or what could be done to reverse the trends.

According to Dr. Rebecca Cunningham of the University of Michigan, more funding is required to fill these gaps

"In the past few years, the CDC and National Institutes of Health combined have funded about $25 million a year in dedicated research on this topic," she told reporters, adding that the study was a good start but more work is required to address the issue.

"When the country really invests [money on social and public matters], science can generate life-saving solutions," Cunningham said, adding that it is one way of making life better for society.