Addressing the Need for Gun Control

WHEREAS, The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People ("NAACP") seeks to end the vast racial disparities and consequences of gun violence and increase effective gun control policies; and

WHEREAS, The American Public Health Association deems gun violence as a leading cause of premature death in the U.S., e.g., guns kill more than 38,000 people and cause nearly 85,000 injuries each year. The Gifford Center determines that Black men make up 52% of all gun homicide victims in the U.S. despite being 6% of the population; and

WHEREAS, According to an ABC News report, data from the Gun Violence Archive shows that the United States has faced at least 202 mass shootings in 2023 as of the date of the drafting of this Resolution, and there have been more mass shootings than days in 2023; and

WHEREAS, An article published by The Guardian on April 19, 2023 entitled, "Stand your ground': the US laws linked to rising deaths and racist violence," provides that a study last year found "stand your ground" laws were linked to an 8% to 11% increase in homicide rates, or roughly 700 additional deaths each year, and research on "stand your ground" laws
has found huge racial disparities, with white Americans much more likely to be successful with self-defense claims, particularly when they kill Black people; and

WHEREAS, The NAACP reaffirms its previous resolutions, Reaffirmation of Gun Control Resolutions of 2013, 2017, and 2018, Reaffirming the Need to Make Communities Smart and Safe Through Violence Reduction (2022), Prohibition of or Ban of the Sale of Any New Assault Weapons National Firearms Act (NFA) to Include "Assault Weapons" (2022), Gun Control in the Wake of the Parkland High School Massacre (2018), NAACP Continues to Support Laws to Prevent Gun Violence and Increase Gun Safety Nationwide (2018), Prohibition of or Ban of the Sale of Any New Assault Weapons National Firearms Act (NFA) to Include "Assault Weapons" (2013).

THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the NAACP work for the adoption by Congress a new ban on the purchase, ownership, and possession of all assault style weapons modeled after military grade firearms, military-style assault weapons, high capacity magazine exceeding 11 rounds or weapons that operate similarly, including the ban on switches, bump stocks and materials used to modify or otherwise convert semi-automatic weapons into automatic weapons that operate similarly thereafter, and further reaffirm the ban of all automatic weapons, (crime bill of 1994) thereto.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the NAACP remains firmly committed to, and will continue its advocacy for, conducting universal background checks to include the alerting and reporting of anyone either convicted or adjudicated of domestic violence or mental health issues that would impact a person's use of firearms, enforcing minimum waiting periods, enacting and enforcing gun dealer regulations, support of Community Lead Intervention Programs, and enacting and enforcing legislation and policies that require law enforcement agencies to keep records of firearm sales for the purpose of disqualifying persons from purchasing guns.

BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED, that the NAACP will advocate with National and State Representatives to repeal all state "stand your ground" laws.