The number of children and teens who die from gun violence on any given day in this country would fill a high school classroom.
That sobering fact comes from the American Academy of Pediatrics report on children and gun violence published in the journal “Pediatrics” and presented at a recent annual meeting of the AAP reported in the organization newsletter “Pediatric News.”
“Each day, 28 U.S. children and teens — the equivalent of a high school classroom — die from gun violence, making it the No. 1 killer of youth through age 24,” AAP said in a statement. The organization noted that the death rate is significantly higher than in all other high-income nations combined, “largely due to an alarming increase in suicides and homicides that do not make national headlines.”
School shootings, horrific as they are, account for less than 1 percent of the firearm deaths of children. Likewise, street violence and crimes are not responsible for the largest share of firearm deaths. Among children 12 and younger, about 85 percent of firearm deaths occur at homes, AAP reported. Teen firearm deaths are about as likely to occur at home as on the street, data showed.
Source: Editorial: Firearms kill the equivalent of a classroom of children a day