Gun violence is a major issue in the U.S. and is a cause for national concern. The media has recorded many violent acts against innocent citizens, which has caused an uproar in response to the drastic increase of gun violence. According to the World Post, in the U.S alone, over 10,000 people die from gunshots annually. This is the highest number of deaths by firearm out of every country in the world. The state with the most privately owned firearms is the state of Louisiana, with about 45.6 percent of households owning a gun.

While many feel that guns are essential for self-defense, more are concerned about the safety of others. Guns have become increasingly easy to buy on the streets. However, this ease of purchase hasn’t gone unchallenged. An organization named “Heeding God’s Call” aims to stop guns from reaching civilian hands. Their main concern they give out to people as stated on their website  is that “Handguns reach streets and neighborhoods through a highly developed illegal trade – gun trafficking. These are the guns used to threaten, wound, maim and kill. The linchpins of gun trafficking are criminal entrepreneurs, traffickers, the straw buyers who stand in for them to make their bulk purchases and gun dealers who look the other way and enjoy the profits.”

The American public has paid close attention to the fact that even after so many acts of violence, the government is not moving quickly enough on this issue. There has been a steady stream of innocents who have been shot and killed. Some recent examples in the media range from the Capitol Hill shooting to the LAPD shooting a homeless man to the shooting in San Bernardino. The reasons behind these crimes vary, from hate crimes to police brutality. These three incidents occurred in the past two weeks, in total accounting for six innocents dead. Bringing into perspective the larger issue: it is trivially easy for the average Joe to get a gun right now.

With the experience and knowledge of having someone in the military, Ms.Wentz expresses her opinion on guns, “a long time ago, guns were something that were only used for hunting. These days, guns are designed for a sole reason and that is to kill people.” Because of this reason she believes that there is no reason for them. She also goes on to state that, when there is a gun in the house, there is a greater chance of danger. As a parent, she finds it irresponsible to have a gun in the house.

On a list of 178 countries, the U.S. has the most privately owned firearms in the world. Ever since the Second Amendment, people in the United States have always felt entitled to protect themselves at any cost. President Obama even addressed this in a speech: “We’re a nation that believes in the Second Amendment, and I believe in the Second Amendment. We’ve got a long tradition of hunting and sportsmen and people who want to make sure they can protect themselves. My belief is that we have to enforce the laws we’ve already got, make sure that we’re keeping guns out of the hands of criminals, those who are mentally ill. We’ve done a much better job in terms of background checks, but we’ve got more to do when it comes to enforcement. But weapons that were designed for soldiers in war theaters don’t belong on our streets. Part of it is seeing if we can get an assault weapons ban reintroduced. But part of it is also looking at other sources of the violence. Because frankly, in my home town of Chicago, there’s an awful lot of violence and they’re not using AK-47s. They’re using cheap handguns.”

While progress is being made by the government toward stopping gun violence, the efforts of policymakers probably won’t stop violence on the streets. The only people that can stop American gun violence are American citizens.