Gun Violence Prevention

More Americans died of gun-related injuries in 2022 than any other year on record, and gun violence was the leading cause of death for children. CAP Action is committed to advancing evidence-based gun violence prevention policies and advocating for local, state, and federal investments in violence prevention programs and victim services. We are also committed to examining gun violence through a racial equity lens and rooting out systemic racism because while gun violence affects every community in the United States, young Black and brown people experience the highest rates of gun homicides.

We can help build safe and just communities by holding gun manufacturers and the gun industry accountable, closing gun law loopholes, and balancing immediate actions we can take to address recent increases in gun violence with long-term solutions focused on root causes. In addition to passing gun control laws to address how easy it is to buy a gun in America, the country must advance holistic community safety and justice policies that advocate for investments in solutions that prevent crime before it happens and defend criminal justice reforms wrongly blamed for increasing crime.

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Cities in Blue States Experiencing Larger Declines in Gun Violence in 2023 Report
A large park is seen before the Chicago city skyline.

Cities in Blue States Experiencing Larger Declines in Gun Violence in 2023

Original analysis from the Center for American Progress Action Fund shows that, on average, cities in blue states have lower rates of gun homicides and shooting incidents than comparably sized cities in red states and are seeing larger single-year decreases in gun violence rates in 2023.

Chandler Hall

A message for Texas Republicans: Gun violence is the problem In the News

A message for Texas Republicans: Gun violence is the problem

Texas teacher, mother, and gun owner Danielle Navarro calls on Republicans to support commonsense gun laws in an op-ed. Navarro hopes for a country free from the terror of senseless gun violence for her children and all students.

The Dallas Morning News

Danielle Navarro

Fact Sheet: Dangerous Gun Laws in North Carolina Fact Sheet
Photo shows crime scene tape stretching across a neighborhood street.

Fact Sheet: Dangerous Gun Laws in North Carolina

Amid a 20 percent surge in gun deaths across North Carolina from 2016 to 2020, Ted Budd made more than $4 million by flooding the state with guns.

the Center for American Progress Action Fund

Fact Sheet: Dangerous Gun Laws in Texas Fact Sheet
A father and his daughter pay their respects to those lost during the mass shooting at Robb Elementary School.

Fact Sheet: Dangerous Gun Laws in Texas

Even after several high-profile mass shootings in Texas, Gov. Greg Abbott continues to weaken the state's gun crime laws; gun deaths have surged 44 percent during his time in office.

the Center for American Progress Action Fund

Fact Sheet: The Truth ​A​bout Violent Crime in Minnesota Fact Sheet
Photo showing a woman holding a candle and a sign that reads

Fact Sheet: The Truth ​A​bout Violent Crime in Minnesota

Violent crime in Minnesota is increasingly fueled by guns, with the share of murders committed with a firearm increasing 27 percent and statewide gun sales surging a stunning 180 percent in the past decade.

the Center for American Progress Action Fund

The Truth About Violent Crime in Oregon Fact Sheet
A demonstrator's sign is seen during the

The Truth About Violent Crime in Oregon

Violent crime in Oregon is increasingly fueled by gun violence, with the share of murders committed with a gun in Portland surging 25 percent in recent years. Christine Drazan and Betsy Johnson would only make things worse.

the Center for American Progress Action Fund

Fact Sheet: Dangerous Gun Laws in Florida Fact Sheet
Activists participate in the second

Fact Sheet: Dangerous Gun Laws in Florida

MAGA Republicans in Florida have driven a massive surge in gun-related violence, with gun crime increasing 20 percent since Gov. DeSantis took office.

the Center for American Progress Action Fund

Fact Sheet: Dangerous Gun Laws in Pennsylvania Fact Sheet
Police tape hangs from a barricade at the corner of 3rd and South Street in Philadelphia.

Fact Sheet: Dangerous Gun Laws in Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania’s violence problem is increasingly a gun violence problem: While homicides have decreased over the past decade, the share due to guns has increased by 13 percent. MAGA Republicans would make it worse.

the Center for American Progress Action Fund

Blame Republicans for High Crime Rates In the News

Blame Republicans for High Crime Rates

In a letter to the editor, Patrick Gaspard argues that Republicans are misattributing a rise in gun violence and violent crime to decreased police funding and criminal justice reforms rather than to weakened gun laws.

the New York Times

Patrick Gaspard

Fact Sheet: Dangerous Gun Laws in Georgia Fact Sheet
A man wearing a shirt endorsing

Fact Sheet: Dangerous Gun Laws in Georgia

Brian Kemp made dangerous gun laws a key part of his campaign for governor in 2018—and since taking office, he has doubled down on these policies: Under Kemp’s watch, the number of homicides in Georgia has surged a stunning 23 percent.

the Center for American Progress Action Fund

Fact Sheet: The Truth About Violent Crime in Clark County Fact Sheet
President Trump delivers remarks at Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department headquarters.

Fact Sheet: The Truth About Violent Crime in Clark County

Donald Trump has blamed Gov. Steve Sisolak for what he calls a “cesspool of crime” in Nevada, but it's his fellow Republican Joe Lombardo who oversaw a record spike in murders while serving as Clark County sheriff.

the Center for American Progress Action Fund

Fact Sheet: Dangerous Gun Laws in Wisconsin Fact Sheet
People join a rally in Janesville, Wisconsin, to show support for students who finished the last leg of a 50-mile journey calling attention to gun violence.

Fact Sheet: Dangerous Gun Laws in Wisconsin

Gov. Tony Evers’ veto of MAGA Republican laws has prevented an even more severe rise in gun violence.

the Center for American Progress Action Fund

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