Gun Doily, 2023
embroidery on vintage doily
More than 195,000 Americans have died by firearm suicide since 2010. A huge part of America's suicide problem is a gun problem. According to the Giffords website, guns are used in only a small fraction of attempted suicides, but because they are so efficiently lethal, they are responsible for a majority of American suicide deaths. (Giffords is a nonprofit advocacy group run by former Congresswoman Gabby Giffords, who in 2011 was shot in the head by a gunman who killed 6 people and injured 12 others.)
Suicide attempts are often impulsive acts. If we can reduce the availability of firearms during moments of crisis, we can reduce suicide rates and save lives. The NRA says people who want to commit suicide will simply "find another way." Ignore their lies. The evidence shows that the vast majority of people who survive suicide attempts do NOT later die from suicide. They DON'T find another way to commit suicide, they find their way out of a crisis and move forward. When guns are easily available, they don't even get that chance.
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