In 2020, more than 45,000 Americans died from fatal firearm injuries, the highest reported in two decades. National statistics on the physical and mental injuries caused by gun violence are not collected, but were they included, the number impacted would be far higher. Estimates suggest that gun deaths increased in 2021 and have remained high throughout the current year. And as of late July, more than 25,000 people in the United States have been killed by gun violence in 2022.
As Americans are facing these tragedies and their impacts, gun companies are reaping the benefits with help from aggressive marketing tactics and gun lobbyists. Over the past two years gun manufacturers made record profits, as gun sales hit record highs. This surge in sales is fed by a cycle of fear encouraged by the gun industry's own marketing, which specifically targets young customers and plays on racial and gender stereotypes. The industry is free to fuel this arms race without facing consequences because the NRA successfully lobbied to get them immunity from the product liability lawsuits that would face any other industry.
