Gun Violence Discussions with Norwegian Teens

“If I lived in the US I would own a gun for protection.”

“Protection from what?” I ask.

“If I go into a city with gangs. I would protect myself from gangs.”

There are a series of questions that I am often asked about the United States. I will attempt to cover many of them as I continue to blog. But, even more than what I think of Donald Trump (more on that later), the question about guns and the need to own a gun in the US has become one that has become increasingly difficult for me to answer and also one that shows how Americans are seen to the rest of the world.

I struggle with this question. The question that is some version of:

What do you think about guns? Or, Do you own a gun?

And often, the response from students of “if I lived in the US I would own a gun.”

My response is “No, I don’t own a gun. But I have shot a gun and I know how to use a gun.”

“Why don’t you own a gun?”

“Because I don’t hunt or participate in shooting sports. And I think that you own guns to hunt or to participate in shooting sports. Rifles and handguns are used for hunting and shooting sports. There is no reason to own a semi-automatic weapon. Semi-automatic weapons were made to kill people. There is no other reason.”

Usually, this is a common starting point. In Norway, there are many people who hunt or participate in biathlons. If you want to buy a gun you need to have a reason. And, semi-automatic weapons are illegal.

But, then things become more complex. The difference between state and federal laws around gun ownership needs to be explained. Illinois has different, and stricter, laws than states like Idaho where my fellow VGS rover lives. We both have different experiences with guns and gun use in our communities.

The idea that everyone owns guns to protect themselves from other people with guns is a rhetoric that Donald Trump and many other politicians rely on to perpetuate the fear that the only way to protect yourself from guns is with more guns.

Responding to this rhetoric is much more difficult. And, it is something that I am struggling with and working on figuring out the best way to respond as I continue my roving experience.

Norwegians, and in particular Norwegian high school students since those are the ones I’m talking to most often, and I agree on many issues regarding guns and gun control.

1. The US has a major struggle with guns, gun use, and gun ownership. Although there is argument about what our Constitution says about guns and gun ownership, at this moment in our history it has been interpreted that individuals have the right to own weapons of all kinds. We own more guns per capita than any other country and we are often proud of that fact.
2. Because of the prevalence of guns in the US, people die. People die in horrific ways. The recent event in Pittsburgh highlights this all too well.
3. People are more likely to die or be injured by a gun than in other countries. Statistics show that the United States have higher gun-related deaths than other industrialized countries.
4. We need to make stricter gun laws. We need to stop access to automatic and semi-automatic weapons. We need restrictions on the number of guns individuals can own. If we don’t make some changes people will continue to die. Statistics also show that states with stricter firearm laws have fewer deaths due to firearms. (Don’t believe me, look at Alaska.)

But, the gun discussion cannot end here. If it does, it perpetuates some very problematic beliefs about Americans and gun ownership in the United States. It also continues racist stereotypes that are dangerous not only in the United States but to the teenagers throughout Norway that I continue to talk with.

The belief that all Americans own guns is a dangerous and misleading one. We have done an excellent job in the US convincing the world that we are gun loving extremists. I have had a number of students say that in the US they believe everyone has and carries guns. Changing this perception can be difficult. Our government does not allow us to keep track of gun ownership, but the most accurate polls on guns and gun ownership state that only around ⅓ of Americans own guns. Many who own guns own multiple guns and many Americans may live in a house with a gun but not own it. These are distinctions that must be noted. Gun ownership in the US may be more common than in other countries, but that does not mean that all Americans, or even half of all Americans, own guns. When we choose not to separate this fact from the discussions of gun violence we start to create images of the US that do not help address the real issues around gun violence.

I have attempted to explain gun laws and how they vary by state. I have explained that in Illinois, for example, you need a permit to carry a gun and you need a FOID (Firearm Owners Identification) Card that you have to get from the state police. And, that you can only carry a concealed weapon if you are over 21 and have been through a police training course that lasts 16 weeks. And, that we are one of 4 states in the US that does not permit the open carry of a firearm. This means, to legally transport a gun in Illinois it must be disassembled or in a case and it cannot be loaded. You cannot legally just freely carry a gun in Illinois. And, the majority of gun owners are not carrying around their guns on a daily basis. Our state also has laws prohibiting assault weapons and those that allow police and family members of a person who they feel is a danger to themselves or others to confiscate the firearm.

The idea that you can legally and freely carry around a gun and that people do so for protection is just not the reality in Illinois, and many other states. Gun owners are hunters or sportspeople. Like in Norway they have a purpose for owning a gun.

This belief in guns as protection also perpetuates fear of people of color. I had students tell me that they needed to have a gun if they went into a city to protect themselves from gangs. And that if they lived in the United States they would need to carry a gun when they went into an area with gangs.

We have done an excellent job of continuing racist images and beliefs about people of color, especially African American men, in the United States. The fact is, more white Americans own guns than black Americans. More men own guns than women, and you are more likely to own a gun if you grew up in a house with guns.

In addition, although gang involvement and violence is on the rise, it is important that the images and understanding of gangs are addressed with students. Yes, gangs are prevalent in urban areas, but they are also visible in rural and suburban America. Gang research shows that there are more Latinos than African Americans in gangs and that 80% of gang-related violence is gang on gang violence, which means gang members are killing each other at much higher rates than they kill innocent bystanders.

But, I was told by one student, “if I were a black boy in the US I would own a gun.”

“But you could not legally own a gun if you are under 21 in Illinois unless your parent allows you to get a FOID card. Then, you have to be 18. Where would you get the gun?”

“From my dad, because he would be in a gang,” was the reply.

I share this exchange because it shows how the US perpetuates the image of a violent black man. Even though I said that most people—let alone most black men—in the United States are not in gangs (and are less likely to own a gun), the students struggled with believing this was the case.

I continue to struggle with this how to address the belief that a gun is needed for self-defense. We make this argument so often in the United States that it becomes difficult to convince people from other countries that if we look at gun-related deaths or injuries in the United States this year alone, the statistics for home invasion, protection, police shootings, and accidental shootings are very similar. You are just as likely to shoot yourself as you are to shoot someone else if you own a gun.

The fact is, you are more likely to be shot in the United States than many other industrial countries. But, more people die in the US each year from self-inflicted gunshot wounds than they do from being shot by someone else. Suicide through the use of a firearm is more likely than homicide. Yet, we choose not to address this issue in the United States. Talking about mental health issues and access to firearms as the leading cause of suicide in the United States NEEDS to be addressed.

And, those who live in homes with guns are more likely to be killed or injured by guns than those who live in gun-free homes.

We need to deal with the access to guns. We need to deal with treating mental illness. We need to stop creating this image of foreigners and people of color shooting and killing people in the United States.

We need to do a better job, America. We also need to think about the images we choose to show the rest of the world. I continue to struggle with how I discuss gun use and gun violence in the United States. This is just the beginnings of how I am attempting to wrestle with approaching America’s firearm use and ownership. But one thing I do know is that we need to think about representations of America in the news and media and what individuals take from those representations when they think about American culture.