Why US gun laws get looser after mass shootings

Congress has rarely acted. But gun laws have been changing.

For decades, the US Congress failed to make meaningful movement on gun reform in the aftermath of mass shootings. But that weak federal response has obscured another story: that state gun laws change after mass shootings all the time. And a study found that, in Republican-controlled state legislatures, a mass shooting roughly doubles the number of laws loosening gun restrictions in the next year.

In this video we look at Texas, where decades of mass shootings in the US have been met with laws that expand gun access. We spoke with Flo Rice, a survivor of the 2018 Santa Fe High School shooting, where a gunman killed 10 people. Flo was shot six times. She and her husband, Scot, became advocates for gun safety, and tried to get tighter gun laws passed in Texas. Watch the piece above to see what happened, and what their story reveals about who has power when it comes to gun policy in the US.

SOURCES:

The Texas Tribune also has this timeline that helped us develop ours:

Chapters:
The gun cycle: 00:00
The study: 1:41
Texas: 3:12
Gun laws across the US: 7:11

[Vox]

This is the third of four videos we're bringing you this week on how power works in the US. Tomorrow, we'll be looking at American infrastructure and the obstacles that keep the country from building big things.

[cheesycheez]

I swear, living through this feels like reading a dystopian novel and thinking this is too outlandish to be possible, then realizing it is actually the reality. It’s hard to believe.

[lightningboltt]

At this point, politicians should be made to wear a banner telling us which company is sponsoring them

[Bober]

‘No Way To Prevent This, ’ Says Only Nation Where This Regularly Happens.

[spoidabetch]

even growing up in a rural part of canada, *most* people around me realized guns are a weapon, or a tool, not some flashy toy. there was way more respect and responsibility shown for guns *most* of the time. people were/are very strict about how, why, where & when they're used, and pass that serious attitude onto the youth too, which is very, very important.
people have to take weekend long courses to get their gun license, and that includes a practicum portion w/ the instructor at the end. they also make it very clear that it's not 'funny' or 'a game' during the course. they'll kick you out/report you if they sense you aren't taking it seriously (happened to someone in my brother's course once) and so on.
you have to renew your license every 5 yrs (in most places), they background check you for life now when you apply and you have to register all you guns too - just basic things that should/need to be happening everywhere - if you let the public own firearms to begin with.
i'm VERY lucky i grew up in a community where most people had respect for guns, and in a country where the public can't conceal carry.

[anzhonnycastillo]

...a country where people see guns as a right, but housing, healthcare, education, liveable wage, etc. as a privilege. Smh...

[probablyaman]

As someone who lives outside the US I always feel so awful to hear about mass shootings. But I don't know what to feel for the US anymore. I know there are so many kind and amazing people living in the US. Yet I feel so numb about all the bad news in the US nowadays. Healthcare, abortion, guns, racial inequality... Part of me think that what the US needs is a revolution from the people. But the people are so divided and I don't think that will solve the problems.

[LaurenSophie]

I live outside of the USA in a country with very strict gun laws. I never thought it was a problem and never felt unsafe because of it. Actually I don't think a lot about guns.

But then I went to the USA as an exchange student. And I had to participate in "active shooter drills". My class mates told me how many of their families had guns at home. Guys talked about going shooting on the weekends. It seemed like there were guns everywhere. When I told my hosts parents that I was worried about all these kids in high school having access to their parents guns ... he looked at me and said "don't worry. I have a gun, maybe it would help you, if I give you your own gun".

I never touched a gun! But it seems for some people a gun problem can only be solved by more guns...

[Abracadaniel]

I'd like to see a study conducted comparing the number of mass shootings in red states vs blue states and if the numbers are comparable, investigate how the shooters are getting the guns. If the guns are coming over state lines, then federal action is the only solution.

[RiPhi]

As a person who lives in a country that does not have a gun culture. I cannot fathom how "Guns" can become so ingrained in a society and become a part of the culture of a country

[richhornie]

Clearly the problem is that there are too few guns for good guys to defend themselves...

[BrandensOutdoorChannel]

Criminals don't care about laws or your feelings.

[expandedhistory]

Why is it that me being a History teacher, I have to worry about getting potentially shot and killed in my own classroom? Why is it that I have to worry about my students safety against a potential shooter? A school should be an environment of learning and safety.

[flowerflower]

Even just one piece of bullet loss by a hunter is a big news here in Japan. Generally takes more than one year to get a license, not a gun.

[vernonhampton]

After moving to Australia last December, the difference in gun culture, ownership, laws and behaviour is night and day in comparison to the United States. I've asked more than several dozen Australians I've met here how they feel about gun ownership and I've yet to hear a single one of them say that they feel a gun would make their daily lives safer. Now, I'm not saying that crime does not happen here, as it happens everywhere humanity exists. What I AM saying is that the gun legislation adopted by parliament in 1996 in concert with the behaviour of the people saw a reduction in gun crime and not one single mass shooting (described as shooting 4 or more persons in a single instance) since 1996. And before anyone asks, there ARE guns here...a LOT of them!

[uranioenriquecido]

As a European, I cannot understand your country

[wolvesrfun]

Like a driver's license, not everybody should have a gun. You should have to pass a test to show that you are properly trained to use and store guns and ammo, and prove that you are mentally stable enough to carry one. And in order to keep them, you should be required to take the test again every once in a while to renew your registration. While the second amendment is important and people should have the right to protect themselves and their families, there is clearly something we are doing wrong for so many mass shootings to be taking place, and more unrestricted access to guns does not seem like the solution.

[chat-with-me]

America, where the only solution to violence
IS violence . . .

[Aci_yt]

If someone breaks into your home and it's easy to get guns, both of you probably have one.
If it's hard to gets guns, both of you probably don't have one.
I'd much rather be in a scenario with no guns.

[atlas]

Why is it cheaper and easier to get an AR-15 rifle than it is to spend 2 days in the hospital for a broken leg? Why is it cheaper and easier to get an AR-15 than an education? Why is it cheaper and easier to get an AR-15 than access to hospitals which will take care of the bullet wounds caused by those AR-15s?