One thing everybody knows about life in the U.S. is that Americans are armed. In fact, the right to bear arms is enshrined in the Constitution, right there in the Bill of Rights along with freedom of speech and religion. In 2023, 42% of American households owned one or more firearms, and that figure has stayed relatively constant over the years.

The American right to bear arms is one of the biggest culture shocks Brits (and most Europeans) have when they arrive in the U.S.

American gun ownership is a big deal: 46% of the world’s civilian owned firearms are owned in the U.S.

You’ll notice guns as soon as you touch down at the airport, where gun-toting police officers chat casually while keeping a watchful eye on the arrivals.

And once you spot them you won’t unsee them: the cab driver with the Sig Sauer visibly strapped where a phone holder might be; the huge weapons and ammunition aisles in Walmart with enough bullets and hardware to equip a small army…

If you’re in the UK, getting ready to embark on your great American adventure, your excitement may be tinged with a little anxiety about gun violence in the U.S. (after all, isn’t there a story in the news every week about the latest mass shooting?).

Here’s our two cents on the subject.

What is the Second Amendment?

What is the right to bear arms?

The text of the right to bear arms can be found in the Bill of Rights:

A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.

The Second Amendment protects the right to keep and bear arms.

It is the legal right for US citizens to possess weapons for the preservation of life, liberty and property. It is one of the original rights that form the Bill of Rights and the second amendment to the constitution of the U.S.

At the time of signing, rights to own weaponry weren’t uncommon in newly formed countries, especially nations that formed through revolutions and the great social upheavals following the enlightenment.

But where most other countries have rolled back these rights for citizens, the USA has stood firm and the right to bear arms isn’t going anywhere soon.

Can anybody own a gun in the U.S?

Not necessarily. In the U.S, individual states pass laws as well as the federal government. That means that it’s easier to buy and use weapons in some states than it is in others.

The status of gun ownership is a matter of public debate. For example, the federal government has banned convicted felons (somebody convicted of a crime with a sentence of at least one year in prison) from owning a firearm, but different states will allow felons to have their rights to gun ownership back after different lengths of time.

Many parts of the USA will allow “open carry”, but some places, like New York City and Washington DC do not allow it.

The ultimate arbiter of gun laws in the USA is the U.S. Supreme Court, whose job is to assess cases brought to them and see if they are prohibited by the constitution. In 2008, the Supreme Court famously ruled that Washington DC’s ban on handguns—which mandated that lawfully owned rifles and shotguns be kept “unloaded and disassembled or bound by a trigger lock—violated the right to keep and bear arms. The case, District of Columbia v. Heller, is a landmark ruling in the guns debate.

What about gun crime?

It’s absolutely true that the U.S. has a much higher rate of firearms being used in crime than any comparable western nation. The Pew Research Center reports that in 2021, 48,830 people died from gun-related injuries in the U.S., a figure that includes gun murders and gun suicides.

Easy access to deadly weapons almost certainly contributes to the the high murder rate in American cities. New York had 433 murders in 2022, as opposed to London which had 109, and New York is a relatively safe American city with a murder rate slightly below average (6 per 100,000 residents as opposed to the national average of 7 in 2022).

But that doesn’t mean you will be in danger as long as you take some precautions. Murders in most major cities have fallen drastically since the 1990s.

Violence in America is generally higher in urban areas, and like any city, there will be pockets and neighbourhoods that are more dangerous than others. If you’re considering moving to the U.S, it’s worth speaking to people who live in the city you are planning on moving to when thinking about where you might wish to live.

Remember that your actual chance of being the victim of any kind of gun crime is very low. The UK’s Foreign Office Travel Advice states that violent crime against tourists is rare.

Can UK citizens go to a gun range in the U.S.?

If all that doom and gloom doesn’t put you off, it’s worth knowing it’s perfectly possible for Brits in the U.S. to purchase ammunition, rent firearms and/or shoot at a gun range in the U.S. (lawfully!). (This author has done it just the once, and although it’s not something he’s hurrying back to do, it was admittedly quite exciting.) We’d definitely advise going with an experienced American buddy to show you the ropes, not least because you probably won’t even be allowed to rent a firearm if you’re alone.

Final thoughts

The prospect of gun crime can be alarming to those venturing across the pond, and it’s undoubtedly a sad reality of life in America, which is very much an outlier when it comes to gun violence. But most Brits in America won’t experience it themselves. If you’re anxious about the issue, it can be a good idea to speak to people who live in the areas you’re interested in.

There are also many charities in the U.S. dedicated to addressing the issue of gun violence in America that are worthy of your support, if you’re able to give time or money.