Child deaths due to guns reach an unprecedented high marking a distressing milestone in the United States

Child fatalities resulting from firearm incidents have reached an unprecedented and alarming level, marking a distressing milestone within the United States.

According to a recent study published by the American Academy of Pediatrics, the year 2021, which represents the most recent data available, saw a staggering 4,752 children lose their lives due to injuries caused by firearms.

Utilizing data sourced from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s mortality database, the study, published in the journal Pediatrics on Monday, revealed that the 4,752 deaths in 2021 reflect a significant escalation from previous years.

In 2020, the count of child deaths due to firearms stood at 4,368, representing a substantial increase from the 3,390 such tragic fatalities reported in 2019.

Tragically, gun violence has now become the leading cause of death among children in the United States since 2020.

The study’s analysis points out that approximately 67 percent of firearm-related homicides were of Black children, while white children accounted for around 78 percent of gun-related suicides.

Annie Andrews, a pediatrician from South Carolina and a researcher focused on gun violence prevention, commented on the grim reality of treating children with gunshot wounds. She expressed her disbelief at the prevalence of such cases, noting that children’s hospitals across the nation are tending to pediatric intensive care units filled with firearm-injured children.

Iman Omer, an advocate against gun violence associated with Students Demand Action and a student at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, described the study’s findings as simultaneously heartbreaking and unsurprising. She cited that in Tennessee alone, 128 children and teenagers die due to gun-related incidents every year.

Coinciding with the release of the study, a special session on public safety was initiated by Tennessee lawmakers. The impetus for this critical session was the tragic school shooting in Nashville earlier in the year, which resulted in the loss of three children and three teachers’ lives.