As a Public Health Threat, Mass Shootings Require Public Health Solutions

Authors

Michael Ulrich, Boston University School of Public Health; Boston University School of LawFollow

Author granted license

Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

4-3-2021

ISSN

1521-1568

Publisher

Nexstar Media Inc.

Language

en-US

Abstract

As the media covers another spate of mass shootings, a familiar and all-too-predictable pattern is emerging yet again: debates over gun control and whether it is too soon to discuss policy, littered with accusations of who is shamelessly taking advantage of the tragedy. In the end, arguments tend to center around a false binary of guns in the hands of those who are safe and those who are dangerous, with little progress made. But these public shootings demonstrate the limitations of one of the most commonly used arguments against gun restrictions, that of the “law-abiding citizen.” Following this argument has real-world consequences, which demand real-world solutions that acknowledge the public health threat guns pose.

Recommended Citation

Michael Ulrich, As a Public Health Threat, Mass Shootings Require Public Health Solutions , in The Hill (2021).
Available at: https://scholarship.law.bu.edu/shorter_works/139

Publisher URL

https://thehill.com/opinion/judiciary/546309-as-a-public-health-threat-mass-shootings-require-public-health-solutions?rl=1