Three-fourths of Americans view gun violence as major problem: poll

WASHINGTON, Aug. 24 (Xinhua) -- Three-fourths of Americans view gun violence as a major problem, according to a new study from the University of Chicago Harris School of Public Policy and The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research.

Eight in 10 say that gun violence is on the rise in the United States while 66 percent believe it is increasing in their state, according to the poll released on Tuesday.

There are significant racial and ethnic disparities in experiences with gun violence across the country.

African Americans and Hispanic Americans are more than twice as likely as white Americans to say either themselves or someone they know has experienced gun violence.

Looking ahead to the next five years, about four in 10 Americans think it is at least somewhat likely that they will personally be a victim of gun violence.

"The poll highlights that gun violence has touched the lives of many Americans, especially Black and Hispanic Americans, and there is significant public concern about this," said Jens Ludwig, a professor at the University of Chicago Harris School of Public Policy, in a statement.

There is broad public support for a variety of gun control policies, and 71 percent of Americans say gun laws should be stricter.

Majorities favor both policies to restrict who can buy guns and policies banning certain guns, but the most popular regulations are those that limit who can purchase guns, according to the poll.

For example, 85 percent support a federal law preventing mentally ill people from purchasing guns, compared to 59 percent who support a nationwide ban on semi-automatic weapons.

The poll was conducted nationwide from July 28 to Aug. 1 of 1,373 adults, with the margin of sampling error at plus/minus 3.8 percentage points.

Gun violence has taken at least 28,700 lives in the United States so far this year, according to the latest data from Gun Violence Archive.