Nearly 40% of US citizens worried about school safety due to shootings
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38% of parents say they fear for their children's safety at school.
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Students wrapping up their lunch break at Lowell Elementary School in Albuquerque, New Mexico, Aug. 22, 2023. (AP)
A new Gallup poll on Thursday revealed that almost 40% of American citizens expressed worry over their children's school safety in light of a spike in gun violence across the country.
The survey was conducted by telephone between August 1st and 23rd with 219 people who have children in all 50 United States and the District of Columbia.
"Parents of school-aged children in the US remain more apprehensive than usual about their child's physical safety at school, as 38% say they fear for their child’s safety," the poll said.
Though the number has slightly decreased from the 2022 reading of 44%, the poll found that it remains the highest since 1977.
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"The historical high, 55%, was measured immediately after the 1999 Columbine High School shooting, in which two students killed 12 students and a teacher before committing suicide," it added.
According to the survey, one out of seven parents, or about 14% of respondents, said that their child expressed worries about school safety.
In 2022, that number was 20%, yet this year's number remains above the average of 12%.
"Although the federal government took steps to address gun violence and school safety…, the issue continues to be a problem. More than 20 shootings have occurred on K-12 school grounds so far this year, including one resulting in six deaths at a Christian school in Nashville, Tennessee, in March," the survey said.
Read more: Armed suspect at North Carolina University campus in custody
Recently, the US has been rocked by a succession of high-profile mass shootings, including in schools, churches, grocery stores, and hospitals.
The alarming rise in gun violence continues to shatter records, with an average of one mass shooting per day in the first half of 2023, and nearly a dozen mass shootings over the 4th of July weekend alone.
Despite all this, a divided Congress is unlikely to pass stricter gun legislation.
