The demographics and politics of gun-owning households
Americans with young children in their home are just as likely as other adults to have a gun in their household, according to newly released survey data from the Pew Research Center.
Overall, about a third of all Americans with children under 18 at home have a gun in their household, including 34% of families with children younger than 12. That’s nearly identical to the share of childless adults or those with older children who have a firearm at home.
The new research also suggests a paradox: 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% vs. 19%). Hispanics are less likely than blacks to be gun homicide victims and half as likely as whites to have a gun at home (20%).
To examine the demographic and political characteristics of gun-owners and their households, we examined data from the new Pew Research Center American Trends Panel survey of 3,243 adults conducted April 29-May 27, including 1,196 who said they or someone in their household owned a gun, pistol or rifle.
All respondents in the nationally representative panel had been interviewed in an earlier Pew Research poll and agreed to participate in future surveys. Margin of sampling error for the overall results is plus or minus 2.3 percentage points and plus or minus 3.7 percentage points for results based only on those in gun-owning households.
The survey results also would appear to challenge the conventional wisdom that gun ownership is far more prevalent in the South. According to the survey, southerners are just about as likely as those living in the Midwest or the West to have a gun at home (38% vs. 35% and 34%, respectively). The regional exception: Households in the northeastern United States, where gun prevalence is significantly lower (27%) than in other parts of the country.
But regional differences emerge when race is factored into the analysis. White southerners are significantly more likely to have a gun at home (47%) than whites in other regions. But because blacks disproportionately live in the South and are only half as likely to have a gun at home as whites, the overall rate for the southern region falls to 38%.
Other longstanding beliefs about the makeup of America’s gun-owning households are confirmed by these data. For example, rural residents and older adults are disproportionately more likely than other Americans to have a gun at home.
http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2014/07/15/the-demographics-and-politics-of-gun-owning-households/
Americans with a gun at home also differ politically from other adults. Republicans are twice as likely as Democrats to be members of a gun-owning household. Political independents also are more likely than Democrats to have a firearm in their homes.
As a group, Americans who have a gun at home see themselves differently than do other adults. According to the survey, adults in gun-owning households are more likely to think of themselves as an “outdoor person” (68% vs. 51%) or “a typical American” (72% vs. 62%), and to say “honor and duty are my core values” (59% vs. 48%).
About six-in-ten gun household members (64%) say they “often feel proud to be American.” In contrast, about half (51%) of other adults say this.
Not surprisingly, members of gun-owning households are more than twice as likely to identify themselves as a “hunter, fisher or sportsman” (37% vs. 16%).
But on other dimensions tested in the survey, those with a gun at home differ little from other Americans. For example, they are as focused on health and fitness as those in non-gun owning households and are about equally likely to say they think of themselves as compassionate or as a trusting person.
Why Would Anyone Choose to Live in South Carolina
I know I am a bore for writing so much about South Carolina. There are probably worst laces to live . places with more racism, more KKK activity, more anti labor laws, more gun culture, etc. But somehow stuff like this keep showing up ..
South Carolina is among our national leaders n the gun couture ..the idea being that guns are s’posed to keep ya safe and all. From the FBI:
“According to data recently released by the FBI, violent crime declined in 2013, and in both number and rate per 100,000 citizens. Says the FBI in a press release about its latest annual “Crime in the United States” report:
“The 2013 statistics show the estimated rate of violent crime was 367.9 offenses per 100,000 inhabitants, and the property crime rate was 2,730.7 offenses per 100,000 inhabitants. The violent crime rate declined 5.1 percent compared to the 2012 rate, while the property crime rate declined 4.8 percent.”
Some states are still far above the national average in violent crimes (murder, non-negligent manslaughter, aggravated assault, robbery, and rape), however. As 24/7 Wall St. notes in its recent assessment:
“Despite the national improvement in crime rates — as well as significant improvements in some of the most dangerous states — a number of states were much more dangerous than the rest of the nation. In fact, South Carolina and Delaware had among the largest decreases in violent crime and still had some of the highest violent crime rates in 2013.”
The most dangerous states, ranked by number of violent crimes per 100,000 population, are:
10. Arkansas – 445.7
9. Florida – 460.0
8. Maryland – 467.8
7. Delaware – 479.1
6. South Carolina – 494.8
5. Louisiana – 510.4
4. Tennessee – 579.7
3. Nevada – 591.2
2.New Mexico – 596.7
1. Alaska – 602.6
Gun homicides and gun ownership listed by country
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![Handguns for sale in a shop in Red Falls, Idaho, USA](https://i.guim.co.uk/static/w-700/h--/q-95/sys-images/Guardian/About/General/2011/1/10/1294685192532/Handguns-for-sale-in-a-sh-007.jpg)
The Aurora shooting has re-lit the arguments over gun control in
the US.
How does the US really compare on firearms? The world’s crime figures are collected by the UNODC through its annual crime survey. It has a special section of data on firearm homicides – and provides detailed information by size of population and compared to other crimes. It is not a perfect dataset – some key nations are missing from the data, including Russia, China and Afghanistan. But it does include the US, UK and many other developed nations.
The Small Arms Survey is also useful – although it is from 2007, it collates civilian gun ownership rates for 178 countries around the world, and has ‘normalised’ the data to include a rate per 100,000 population.
It shows that:
With less than 5% of the world’s population, the United States is home to roughly 35–50 per cent of the world’s civilian-owned guns, heavily skewing the global geography of firearms and any relative comparison
So, given those caveats, we can see which countries have the highest ownership rates for firearms – and which have the highest gun murder rates.
The key facts are:
• The US has the highest gun ownership rate in the world – an average of 88 per 100 people. That puts it first in the world for gun ownership – and even the number two country, Yemen, has significantly fewer – 54.8 per 100 people
• But the US does not have the worst firearm murder rate – that prize belongs to Honduras, El Salvador and Jamaica. In fact, the US is number 28, with a rate of 2.97 per 100,000 people
• Puerto Rico tops the world’s table for firearms murders as a percentage of all homicides – 94.8%. It’s followed by Sierra Leone in Africa and Saint Kitts and Nevis in the Caribbean
The full data is below – what can you do with it?
Data summary
Country | % of homicides by firearm | Number of homicides by firearm | Homicide by firearm rate per 100,000 pop | Rank by rate of ownership | Average firearms per 100 people | Average total all civilian firearms |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Albania | 65.9 | 56 | 1.76 | 70 | 8.6 | 270,000 |
Algeria | 4.8 | 20 | 0.06 | 78 | 7.6 | 1,900,000 |
Angola | 34 | 17.3 | 2,800,000 | |||
Anguilla | 24 | 1 | 7.14 | |||
Argentina | 52 | 1,198 | 3.02 | 62 | 10.2 | 3,950,000 |
Armenia | 13 | 9 | 0.29 | 52 | 12.5 | 380,000 |
Australia | 11.5 | 30 | 0.14 | 42 | 15 | 3,050,000 |
Austria | 29.5 | 18 | 0.22 | 14 | 30.4 | 2,500,000 |
Azerbaijan | 6.5 | 11 | 0.12 | 115 | 3.5 | 290,000 |
Bahamas | 61.2 | 52 | 15.37 | 98 | 5.3 | 17,000 |
Bahrain | 0 | 0 | 0 | 18 | 24.8 | 180,000 |
Bangladesh | 43.6 | 1,456 | 1.12 | 169 | 0.5 | 700,000 |
Barbados | 40 | 8 | 2.99 | 76 | 7.8 | 21,000 |
Belarus | 2.5 | 12 | 0.12 | 79 | 7.3 | 710,000 |
Belgium | 39.5 | 70 | 0.68 | 34 | 17.2 | 1,800,000 |
Belize | 52.3 | 68 | 21.82 | 62 | 10 | 29,000 |
Benin | 137 | 1.4 | 120,000 | |||
Bermuda | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||
Bhutan | 115 | 3.5 | 22,000 | |||
Bolivia | 119 | 2.8 | 260,000 | |||
Bosnia and Herzegovina | 24.7 | 18 | 0.48 | 34 | 17.3 | 675,000 |
Botswana | 102 | 4.9 | 87,000 | |||
Brazil | 70.8 | 34,678 | 18.1 | 75 | 8 | 14,840,000 |
Brunei | 0 | 0 | 0 | 137 | 1.4 | 5,400 |
Bulgaria | 29.7 | 51 | 0.67 | 88 | 6.2 | 480,000 |
Burkina Faso | 149 | 1.1 | 148,000 | |||
Burundi | 145 | 1.2 | 200,000 | |||
Cambodia | 36.7 | 187 | 1.44 | 109 | 4.3 | 600,000 |
Cameroon | 119 | 2.8 | 340,000 | |||
Canada | 32 | 173 | 0.51 | 13 | 30.8 | 9,950,000 |
Cape Verde | 96 | 5.4 | 9,500 | |||
Central African Republic | 153 | 1 | 40,000 | |||
Chad | 149 | 1.1 | 109,000 | |||
Chile | 37.3 | 353 | 2.16 | 59 | 10.7 | 1,750,000 |
China | 102 | 4.9 | 40,000,000 | |||
Colombia | 81.1 | 12,539 | 27.09 | 91 | 5.9 | 2,700,000 |
Comoros | 127 | 1.8 | 11,000 | |||
Congo | 122 | 2.7 | 100,000 | |||
Congo, Dem Rep | 33.2 | 248 | 1.56 | 137 | 1.4 | 800,000 |
Costa Rica | 57.3 | 201 | 4.59 | 64 | 9.9 | 430,000 |
Côte d´Ivoire | 124 | 2.4 | 400,000 | |||
Croatia | 34.7 | 17 | 0.39 | 26 | 21.7 | 950,000 |
Cuba | 4.4 | 27 | 0.24 | 104 | 4.8 | 545,000 |
Cyprus | 26.3 | 5 | 0.46 | 6 | 36.4 | 275,000 |
Czech Republic | 11 | 20 | 0.19 | 38 | 16.3 | 1,600,000 |
Denmark | 31.9 | 15 | 0.27 | 54 | 12 | 650,000 |
Djibouti | 119 | 2.8 | 22,000 | |||
Dominican Republic | 65.5 | 1,618 | 16.3 | 99 | 5.1 | 450,000 |
East Timor | 177 | 0.3 | 3,000 | |||
Ecuador | 68.7 | 1,790 | 12.73 | 142 | 1.3 | 370,000 |
Egypt | 69.1 | 453 | 0.57 | 115 | 3.5 | 1,900,000 |
El Salvador | 76.9 | 2,446 | 39.9 | 92 | 5.8 | 400,000 |
England and Wales | 6.6 | 41 | 0.07 | 88 | 6.2 | 3,400,000 |
Equatorial Guinea | 29 | 19.9 | 100,000 | |||
Eritrea | 169 | 0.5 | 20,000 | |||
Estonia | 3.9 | 3 | 0.24 | 65 | 9.2 | 123,000 |
Ethiopia | 174 | 0.4 | 320,000 | |||
Fiji | 169 | 0.5 | 4,000 | |||
Finland | 19.8 | 24 | 0.45 | 4 | 45.3 | 2,400,000 |
France | 9.6 | 35 | 0.06 | 12 | 31.2 | 19,000,000 |
Gabon | 46 | 14 | 190,000 | |||
Gambia | 157 | 0.8 | 123,000 | |||
Georgia | 13.3 | 24 | 0.55 | 79 | 7.3 | 330,000 |
Germany | 26.3 | 158 | 0.19 | 15 | 30.3 | 25,000,000 |
Ghana | 174 | 0.4 | 80,000 | |||
Greece | 34.9 | 29 | 0.26 | 23 | 22.5 | 2,500,000 |
Grenada | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||
Guatemala | 84 | 5,009 | 34.81 | 49 | 13.1 | 1,650,000 |
Guinea | 145 | 1.2 | 110,000 | |||
Guinea-Bissau | 129 | 1.6 | 25,000 | |||
Guyana | 61.3 | 85 | 11.46 | 45 | 14.6 | 110,000 |
Haiti | 164 | 0.6 | 190,000 | |||
Honduras | 83.4 | 5,201 | 68.43 | 88 | 6.2 | 500,000 |
Hong Kong | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||
Hungary | 5 | 7 | 0.07 | 93 | 5.5 | 560,000 |
Iceland | 0 | 0 | 0 | 15 | 30.3 | 90,000 |
India | 7.6 | 3,093 | 0.26 | 110 | 4.2 | 46,000,000 |
Indonesia | 169 | 0.5 | 1,000,000 | |||
Iran | 79 | 7.3 | 3,500,000 | |||
Iraq | 8 | 34.2 | 9,750,000 | |||
Ireland | 42 | 21 | 0.48 | 70 | 8.6 | 360,000 |
Israel | 11.7 | 6 | 0.09 | 79 | 7.3 | 500,000 |
Italy | 66.7 | 417 | 0.71 | 55 | 11.9 | 7,000,000 |
Jamaica | 75.6 | 1,080 | 39.4 | 74 | 8.1 | 215,000 |
Japan | 1.8 | 11 | 0.01 | 164 | 0.6 | 710,000 |
Jordan | 38.8 | 26 | 0.49 | 58 | 11.5 | 630,000 |
Kazakhstan | 12.5 | 210 | 1.34 | 142 | 1.3 | 200,000 |
Kenya | 86 | 6.4 | 740,000 | |||
Korea, North | 164 | 0.6 | 130,000 | |||
Korea, South | 1.7 | 14 | 0.03 | 149 | 1.1 | 510,000 |
Kosovo | 30 | 19.5 | 415,000 | |||
Kuwait | 18 | 24.8 | 630,000 | |||
Kyrgyzstan | 8.3 | 28 | 0.54 | 156 | 0.9 | 45,000 |
Laos | 145 | 1.2 | 71,000 | |||
Latvia | 4.6 | 5 | 0.22 | 32 | 19 | 280,000 |
Lebanon | 36.5 | 31 | 0.76 | 28 | 21 | 750,000 |
Lesotho | 122 | 2.7 | 47,000 | |||
Liberia | 13.2 | 17 | 0.43 | 129 | 1.6 | 51,000 |
Libya | 40 | 15.5 | 900,000 | |||
Liechtenstein | 100 | 1 | 2.82 | |||
Lithuania | 2.5 | 6 | 0.18 | 160 | 0.7 | 135,000 |
Luxembourg | 42.9 | 3 | 0.62 | 41 | 15.3 | 70,000 |
Macedonia | 62.5 | 25 | 1.21 | 20 | 24.1 | 490,000 |
Madagascar | 157 | 0.8 | 150,000 | |||
Malawi | 160 | 0.7 | 92,000 | |||
Malaysia | 13.4 | 64 | 0.24 | 133 | 1.5 | 370,000 |
Maldives | 62.5 | 5 | 1.63 | 85 | 6.5 | 21,000 |
Mali | 149 | 1.1 | 143,000 | |||
Malta | 0 | 0 | 0 | 55 | 11.9 | 48,000 |
Mauritania | 129 | 1.6 | 50,000 | |||
Mauritius | 2 | 1 | 0.1 | 44 | 14.7 | 180,000 |
Mexico | 54.9 | 11,309 | 9.97 | 42 | 15 | 15,500,000 |
Moldova | 3.3 | 8 | 0.22 | 83 | 7.1 | 300,000 |
Monaco | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||
Mongolia | 1.4 | 3 | 0.11 | 126 | 1.9 | 50,000 |
Montenegro | 21 | 23.1 | 150,000 | |||
Morocco | 101 | 5 | 1,500,000 | |||
Mozambique | 99 | 5.1 | 1,000,000 | |||
Myanmar | 111 | 4 | 2,000,000 | |||
Namibia | 51 | 12.6 | 260,000 | |||
Nepal | 13.3 | 84 | 0.3 | 159 | 0.8 | 205,000 |
Netherlands | 30.7 | 55 | 0.33 | 112 | 3.9 | 510,000 |
New Zealand | 13.5 | 7 | 0.16 | 22 | 22.6 | 925,000 |
Nicaragua | 42.1 | 338 | 5.92 | 77 | 7.7 | 395,000 |
Niger | 160 | 0.7 | 93,000 | |||
Nigeria | 133 | 1.5 | 2,000,000 | |||
Northern Ireland | 4.5 | 5 | 0.28 | 25 | 21.9 | 380,000 |
Norway | 8.1 | 2 | 0.05 | 11 | 31.3 | 1,400,000 |
Oman | 17 | 25.4 | 650,000 | |||
Pakistan | 57 | 11.6 | 18,000,000 | |||
Panama | 75 | 569 | 16.18 | 26 | 21.7 | 700,000 |
Papua New Guinea | 145 | 1.2 | 71,000 | |||
Paraguay | 56.1 | 466 | 7.35 | 37 | 17 | 1,000,000 |
Peru | 50.8 | 757 | 2.63 | 33 | 18.8 | 750,000 |
Philippines | 49.9 | 7,349 | 8.93 | 105 | 4.7 | 3,900,000 |
Poland | 7.1 | 35 | 0.09 | 142 | 1.3 | 510,000 |
Portugal | 33.8 | 44 | 0.41 | 72 | 8.5 | 900,000 |
Puerto Rico | 94.8 | 692 | 18.3 | |||
Qatar | 16.7 | 1 | 0.14 | 31 | 19.2 | 520,100 |
Romania | 1.3 | 5 | 0.02 | 160 | 0.7 | 160,000 |
Russia | 68 | 8.9 | 12,750,000 | |||
Rwanda | 164 | 0.6 | 58,000 | |||
Saint Kitts and Nevis | 85 | 17 | 32.44 | |||
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines | 30 | 6 | 5.49 | |||
Saudi Arabia | 7 | 35 | 6,000,000 | |||
Scotland | 93 | 5.5 | 280,000 | |||
Senegal | 125 | 2 | 230,000 | |||
Serbia | 33.1 | 45 | 0.46 | 5 | 37.8 | 3,050,000 |
Seychelles | 96 | 5.4 | 4,600 | |||
Sierra Leone | 87.7 | 128 | 2.28 | 164 | 0.6 | 34,000 |
Singapore | 5.9 | 1 | 0.02 | 169 | 0.5 | 22,000 |
Slovakia | 11.2 | 10 | 0.18 | 73 | 8.3 | 450,000 |
Slovenia | 15.4 | 2 | 0.1 | 47 | 13.5 | 270,000 |
Solomon Islands | 0 | 0 | 0 | 174 | 0.4 | 1,800 |
Somalia | 66 | 9.1 | 750,000 | |||
South Africa | 45 | 8,319 | 17.03 | 50 | 12.7 | 5,950,000 |
Spain | 21.8 | 90 | 0.2 | 61 | 10.4 | 4,500,000 |
Sri Lanka | 21.1 | 291 | 1.48 | 133 | 1.5 | 300,000 |
Sudan | 93 | 5.5 | 2,000,000 | |||
Suriname | 48 | 13.4 | 60,000 | |||
Swaziland | 86 | 6.4 | 72,000 | |||
Sweden | 33.9 | 37 | 0.41 | 10 | 31.6 | 2,800,000 |
Switzerland | 72.2 | 57 | 0.77 | 3 | 45.7 | 3,400,000 |
Syria | 112 | 3.9 | 735,000 | |||
Taiwan | 15.9 | 128 | 0.56 | 106 | 4.4 | 725,000 |
Tajikistan | 15.6 | 15 | 0.22 | 153 | 1 | 65,000 |
Tanzania | 137 | 1.4 | 550,000 | |||
Thailand | 39 | 15.6 | 10,000,000 | |||
Togo | 153 | 1 | 60,000 | |||
Trinidad and Tobago | 72.1 | 365 | 27.31 | 129 | 1.6 | 21,000 |
Tunisia | 178 | 0.1 | 9,000 | |||
Turkey | 16.9 | 535 | 0.77 | 52 | 12.5 | 9,000,000 |
Turkmenistan | 2.4 | 5 | 0.1 | 114 | 3.8 | 180,000 |
Uganda | 10.5 | 280 | 0.87 | 137 | 1.4 | 400,000 |
Ukraine | 4.5 | 100 | 0.22 | 84 | 6.6 | 3,100,000 |
United Arab Emirates | 24 | 22.1 | 1,000,000 | |||
United States | 60 | 9,146 | 2.97 | 1 | 88.8 | 270,000,000 |
Uruguay | 46.5 | 93 | 2.8 | 9 | 31.8 | 1,100,000 |
Uzbekistan | 133 | 1.5 | 1,200,000 | |||
Venezuela | 79.5 | 11,115 | 38.97 | 59 | 10.7 | 2,850,000 |
Vietnam | 52.9 | 834 | 0.99 | 128 | 1.7 | 1,100,000 |
West Bank & Gaza | 72.4 | 105 | 2.95 | 118 | 3.4 | 125,000 |
Yemen | 2 | 54.8 | 11,500,000 | |||
Zambia | 11.7 | 28 | 0.35 | 68 | 8.9 | 230,000 |
Zimbabwe | 65.6 | 598 | 4.78 | 106 | 4.4 | 400,000 |
SOURCES: UNODC & Small arms survey |
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