As Black History Month Starts, Everytown and Moms Demand Action, Students Demand Action Volunteers Sound the Alarm of Disproportionate Impact of Gun Violence on Black Communities

Every Day, 30 Black People In The U.S. are Killed By Guns and More Than 110 Experience Non-Fatal Injuries

Gun Violence Survivors and Volunteers are Available for Interviews About Their Work This Month 

NEW YORK — Everytown for Gun Safety Support Fund, Everytown for Gun Safety Action Fund, and its grassroots networks, Moms Demand Action and Students Demand Action, today released statements to mark the beginning of Black History Month, recognizing the disproportionate impact of gun violence in Black communities. Black people in the U.S. are 10 times more likely than white people to die by gun homicide.

Gun violence is ravaging the country, but no group has been hit harder than Black people. More people die from gun violence by early February in the United States than during an entire calendar year in other high-income countries. And, 58% of adults in the U.S. – including 68% of Black American adults –  are survivors of gun violence, either experiencing gun violence themselves or caring for someone who has experienced gun violence in their lifetimes.  

“There is no way to talk about gun violence without talking about its disproportionate impact on Black people across the country,” said Angela Ferrell-Zabala, Senior Vice President of Movement Building. “Black communities bear the brunt of the physical, emotional, and financial burden that comes with our nation’s continual rise in gun violence. Black communities’ safety should be a priority at all levels of government for this month and beyond.”  

“Just like my family, too many Black families across the country know the pain of having someone stolen by gun violence,” said Celeste Iroha, a volunteer with Students Demand Action in Maryland and a member of the Everytown Survivor Network. “The trauma of gun violence goes beyond just the family – it affects our entire community. It’s time for our leaders to do more than offer thoughts and prayers when gun violence happens. We need action.” 

Gun homicides, assaults, and shootings by police are disproportionately prevalent in historically underfunded neighborhoods and cities. This lack of funding intensifies our country’s long-standing racial inequities. However, those types of gun violence are not the only ways gun violence affects Black communities. In fact, gun suicides continue to rise among Black youth, and domestic violence continues to impact women and children in the community. Research shows that the disproportionate rates of gun violence in many Black communities leave psychological scars that can alter the choices, health, and life trajectory of children, adults, and the collective community in serious and lasting ways. Trauma resulting from gun violence in Black communities reverberates through families and across generations and is overlaid with a history of structural racism and discriminatory policies that both inflict trauma and exacerbate it. 

Violence intervention outreach workers, survivors of gun violence, and locally-run organizations are working every day to bring opportunity and healing to communities characterized by high levels of all types of gun violence — but data and resources are needed to support these efforts.

This February, Everytown is honoring Black survivors and recognizing the importance of Black leadership, advocacy, and resilience in the gun violence prevention movement — and is calling on policymakers at every level to prioritize ending this public health crisis in the communities hit hardest by gun violence. More information on the disproportionate impact of gun violence on Black people in the U.S. is available here. To speak with a policy expert, Moms Demand Action and/or Students Demand Action volunteer, please do not hesitate to reach out.