The issue of gun control has once again become a national debate, sparked by the Feb. 14 Parkland, Fla., mass high school shooting and the ensuing worldwide “March For Our Lives” movement that attracted scores of protesters.
The Wheel spoke with Professor of Economics Shomu Banerjee, Associate Professor of Political Science Andra Gillespie and Interim Director for the Injury Prevention Research Center at Emory and Associate Professor of Emergency Medicine David Wright, who shared their thoughts on where the conversation on gun control is headed and potential policy changes.
The Wheel’s “Round Table” series aims to broadcast the opinions of Emory faculty and staff who specialize in relevant areas.
Valerie Sandoval, The Emory Wheel: How has public opinion shifted on gun control since the Parkland shooting? What do you think the effects of the national student protests will be on gun control legislation?
Shomu Banerjee: I was very surprised that the aftermath of the Parkland shooting has been very different from that of Columbine or Sandy Hook. My personal feeling was that after Sandy Hook, if that could not move people to enact gun legislation of some kind, nothing would. But somehow this last one has really taken me by surprise. I suppose it’s because a large number of the people who were affected are young adults and they are vocal, and many of them are eligible to vote or will soon be eligible. They can feel that the future belongs to them. I’ve lived in this country for 37 years, and this is the first time in 37 years that I’m seeing the needle move towards some amount of sensible gun control.
Andra Gillespie: In looking at Gallup polls over time … in general there is a lot of support for gun control, and there has been for a pretty long time. After Sandy Hook, based on when the question had been previously asked, there was a spike in the Gallup poll, and there appears to have been a spike since the previous time the question had been asked after the Las Vegas shooting. It looks like the polls right after Parkland suggest that there was a similar spike in support of gun control measures. That in and of itself is not necessarily surprising. Looking back at old surveys, we see local spikes after Columbine. I think the question is, can you get a gun control measure through a hyperpartisan, hyperpolarized Congress, and would [U.S. President Donald J.] Trump sign [a gun control bill] if it were put on his desk?
David Wright: I think we get a sense that this movement has a little more legs to it than the prior calls, and frankly I think a lot of that is because of students driving this. The youth are driving this. In terms of the effects of the protests on legislation, who knows? We don’t know yet. There are two sides to this. If they fizzle
