Children &amp; Teens

36%

Over the past decade, the firearm suicide rate among children and teens has increased by 36 percent.

>18x

Black children and teens are more than 18 times more likely than white children and teens of the same age to die by gun homicide.

Approximately three million American children witness gun violence every year.

CHILD & TEEN GUN DEATHS PER YEAR

65% of child and teen gun deaths are homicides.

Source: CDC, WONDER, Provisional Mortality Statistics, Multiple Cause of Death, 2019–2023. Homicides include shootings by police. Ages 0–19.

Last updated: 11.7.2024

Secure Gun Storage

Gun owners can make their homes and communities safer by storing their guns securely. This means storing them unloaded, locked, and separate from ammunition.
Extreme Risk Laws

When a person is in crisis and considering harming themselves or others, family members and law enforcement are often the first people to see the warning signs. Extreme Risk laws, sometimes referred to as “Red Flag” laws, allow loved ones or law enforcement to intervene by petitioning a court for an order to temporarily prevent someone in crisis from accessing guns.
Smart Guns and Gun Safety Features

A personalized—or “smart”—gun is a firearm that employs authorized-use technology, like the thumb scan or passcode available on many smartphones, to turn stolen guns and guns accessed by children into harmless pieces of steel. If widely implemented, it would be a game-changer for keeping guns out of the hands of children and criminals.
Reconsider Active Shooter Drills

95% of American public schools drill students on lockdown procedures. Yet, there is no strong conclusive evidence of the value of these drills for preventing school shootings or protecting the school community when shootings do occur.
Stop Arming Teachers

To prevent tragedies we must implement strong school safety solutions, but arming teachers is not one of them. School shootings are chaotic and in these moments of chaos, we cannot ask teachers to stop a shooter, potentially a current or former student.
Threat Identification and Assessment Programs in Schools

The most important thing that schools can do to prevent active shooter incidents—and gun violence overall—is to intervene before a person commits an act of violence. Threat assessment and identification programs allow schools to intervene to address potential violent behavior.
Background Checks on All Gun Sales

Background checks are the foundation of any comprehensive gun violence prevention strategy. Current federal law requires that background checks be conducted whenever a person attempts to buy a gun from a licensed gun dealer. This is to ensure that the buyer is not legally prohibited from having the gun. Since federal law began requiring these background checks in 1994, background checks have blocked millions of sales to people with felony convictions or other prohibiting histories.

Featured Resources

Collage depicting a ruler with lined notebook paper and a student wearing a backpack

How To Stop Shootings and Gun Violence in Schools: A Plan to Keep Students Safe

We need meaningful actions to keep our schools safe, actions that address what we know about gun violence in America’s schools.

The Rise of Firearm Suicide Among Young Americans

Firearm suicide is having a devastating impact on American youth, particularly during COVID-19. But suicide can be prevented.

Preventable Tragedies: Unintentional Shootings by Children

Unintentional shootings by children are a persistent, yet preventable, tragedy that disproportionately involves preschool and teenage boys.

The Impact of Active Shooter Drills in Schools

Since the 1999 Columbine shooting, active shooter drills have proliferated in America’s school systems at an exponential rate.

Not An Accident: Unintentional Shootings by Children

Every year, hundreds of children unintentionally shoot themselves or someone else after accessing unsecured guns. This is not an accident.

Data Tracker

Gunfire on School Grounds

Since 2013, Everytown has tracked incidents of gunfire on school grounds to learn how often youth are affected by gun violence.

Data Tracker

Children & Teens

NEA School Gun Violence Prevention and Response Guide

About the National Education Association and Everytown for Gun Safety Support Fund The National Education Association (NEA) is…

A black-and-white image of a school bus is in the foreground, with a father and daughter getting out of a car and walking into the school pictured in the bottom left of the image. Two yellow-and-blue circles are superimposed on the image; one is at the bottom left, highlighting the father/daughter, and one is on the top right, highlighting the sign on the bus that reads

Gun Violence Is Down in Our Cities. Why Not Also in Our Schools?

Arming Teachers Introduces New Risks Into Schools

Introduction During the 2023–2024 school year, there were 49 deaths from gunfire on US school grounds and an additional 116 injuries.

A black-and-white photo of two students sitting at a desk, looking at a teacher who is standing at a whiteboard. The photo is overlaid with a yellow and blue circle.

The Relationship Between Firearms, Mass Shootings and Suicide Risk among LGBTQ+ Young People

One in five LGBTQ+ young people report they or someone they know has been personally impacted by a mass shooting.

Everytown Research & Policy

New Data, Same Conclusion: Smart Gun Laws Save Lives

Everytown's Gun Law Rankings show a clear correlation between states with strong gun laws and lower rates of gun violence.

Findings from the #NotAnAccident Index, 2015–2021 (Injury Epidemiology)

This study published in Injury Epidemiology assesses the scope of unintentional shootings by children in the US.

Everytown Research & Policy

Two Decades of Suicide Prevention Laws: Lessons from National Leaders in Gun Safety Policy

In order to understand the variability in state-level firearm suicide rates, Everytown has examined the role of state gun safety policies.

How Can We Prevent Gun Violence in American Schools?

School leaders and policymakers must support and implement strong gun safety laws and school-based interventions.

Be SMART

The Be SMART campaign raises awareness about how secure gun storage can save children’s lives.

Initiative

Cómo detener los tiroteos y la violencia armada en las escuelas: Un plan para mantener seguros a los estudiantes

Necesitamos acciones significativas para mantener nuestras escuelas y las comunidades circundantes seguras en los Estados Unidos.

A Continuum of Gun Access Interventions for Preventing Gun Suicide

Gun access interventions exist on a continuum, a chain of actions that can be taken depending on the severity of the crisis.

Guide to Secure Gun Storage Devices

Secure gun storage can prevent theft and access by children, unauthorized users, and anyone who may pose a danger to themself or others.

Gun Violence in America

We have gathered the most comprehensive, publicly available data to illustrate the magnitude of everyday gun violence.

A person with an America flag over their shoulders

Keeping Our Schools Safe: A Plan for Preventing Mass Shootings and Ending All Gun Violence in American Schools

The failure of our leaders to address the root causes of school gun violence is having lasting consequences for millions of children.

Unload, Lock, and Separate: Secure Gun Storage Practices to Reduce Violence

Secure gun storage practices should include unloading the ammunition, locking the gun, and storing it and ammunition in separate locations.

The Impact of Gun Violence on Children and Teens

Children's exposure to gun violence has far reaching effects: An estimated three million children witness a shooting each year.