Guns as a Symbol of (Fill-in-the-Blank)

Abstract

Guns are symbolic of many things in America, but a critical assessment of these semiotic narratives shows them to be seriously limited in understanding the nature of gun violence in the United States, which has killed 30,000 per year on average for over two decades, 75 times more than all military fatalities in America’s “longest war” (in Afghanistan). An additional 70,000 people on average are wounded per year, again for over two decades. Gun violence has been misinterpreted by mass media and many other sources; it should be redefined as the major public health problem it is. Gun violence should be distinguished from the Second Amendment and “gun rights.” Politicians and partisans connect these issues for their own purposes, but they are distinct. Future constructive efforts should consciously disconnect these two issues.