In 2023 alone, there have been 195 mass shootings according to the Mass Shooting Tracker. By the time this article is published, this number is expected to rise.  The Mass Shooting Tracker defines mass shootings as “a single outburst of violence in which four or more people are shot” excluding the shooter. 

Mass shootings have become more common in occurrence. Gun-related violence as a whole is up; gun-related deaths are up by nearly 31% from 2019 to 2022. Mass shootings, while unsettling, aren’t all that common, making up only 1.1% of gun-related deaths in the U.S.

Mass shootings are unpredictable in nature, making the root cause hard to pinpoint. Still, some speculate that the increased rates of gun purchases could be a factor. From 2019 to 2020, U.S. gun sales saw a 65% increase, with sales being 23 million. 

Due to this, many people have proposed that making background checks necessary for those purchasing a firearm could help keep them out of the wrong hands.