The Defensive Gun Use Lie and the Gun Lobby’s Firehose of Falsehood - Part 12
Why the Defensive Gun Use Myth Matters
By: Devin Hughes
This is Part 12 of a 12-part series debunking the defensive gun use myth.
Part 1 examined recent high-profile incidents of DGUs gone wrong, how the NRA has seized on the defensive gun use narrative to further its guns everywhere agenda, and what constitutes a DGU. Part 2 looked at the academic origins of the DGU myth and its massive flaws. Part 3 delved into why surveys of statistically rare events produce substantial overestimates. Part 4 explored the surprising parallel pro-gun academic Gary Kleck draws between defensive gun use and using cocaine. Part 5 explained how most DGUs reported in surveys are likely aggressive and illegal. Part 6 looked at the National Crime Victimization Survey’s DGU numbers as an alternative to private surveys. Part 7 investigated the lie that there are more defensive gun uses than offensive uses, and how that lie found its way into the 2013 National Academy of Sciences Report on firearms. Part 8 examined the Gun Violence Archive’s data on defensive gun use and how it debunks the widespread DGU myth. Part 9 looked at pro-gun attempts to resurrect the defensive gun use myth in recent years. Part 10 examined the story of why the CDC removed flawed defensive gun use numbers from its “Fast Facts” website, and the resulting pro-gun firestorm. Part 11 analyzed the false claim that defensive gun use is more effective at preventing injury than other forms of self-defense.
Today, we will provide some final thoughts on the defensive gun use myth and its central role in shaping America’s gun culture.
Part 12: Why the Defensive Gun Use Myth Matters
The myth that defensive gun uses (DGU) are common, effective, and prevent crime is the bedrock of the gun lobby’s “guns make you safer” Firehose of Falsehood campaign. This false claim has permeated gun culture — most Americans who buy guns cite self-defense as their primary reason for doing so.
As gun sales increased over the past decade, and then soared to record heights during the pandemic, profits for the gun industry also increased. The National Rifle Association (NRA) itself has not been shy about its marketing strategy that helped fuel the increase in gun ownership. Internal NRA documents unearthed by The Trace reveal the NRA’s Information Division director bluntly stating: “This is why no matter the policy, our messaging continues to focus on self-defense.”
As our investigation has revealed, all of the major pro-gun talking points surrounding defensive gun use are false.
Defensive gun use is not widespread. Pro-gun proponents claim that there are millions of defensive gun uses (hereinafter “DGUs”) annually; however, Gun Violence Archive data finds between 1,195 and 2,119 verified DGUs annually.
Defensive gun use is not beneficial for society. Every type of data source finds vastly more offensive than defensive gun uses. Looking closer at the data also reveals that most DGUs are criminal and societally harmful actions in which a gun owner attacks someone, as the case of Daniel Perry demonstrates.
Guns are not the most effective means of self-defense. Despite claims that DGUs are “by far the most effective way for people to protect themselves,” research consistently shows no statistically significant difference in injury rates between using a gun or a different means of self-defense.
While the touted benefits of gun ownership are based in myth and falsehood, the reality is that having a firearm in the home increases the likelihood of death or injury to the home's inhabitants.
First, studies show that having a firearm in the home doubles the risk of homicide and triples the risk of suicide for all the inhabitants. The act of attempting suicide is frequently impulsive, and the increased lethality of a firearm over other methods does not provide a second chance.
Second, firearms in the home, especially when improperly stored, combined with a household of curious children, is a recipe for tragedy. U.S. children under the age of 15 are already 9 times more likely to die in an unintentional shooting than their peers in the developed world, and states with higher rates of gun ownership experience a higher rate of unintentional child shootings.
Third, domestic violence is 5 times more lethal with a firearm in the home. A 2004 study comparing women killed by an intimate partner to those who were abused but survived found that half the female homicide victims lived in a home with a firearm, while only 16% of women who were abused but survived lived with a firearm.
Finally, a 2002 study found that increased levels of gun ownership were associated with higher rates of burglary, implying that guns were an attractive target for criminals rather than a deterrent. These firearm thefts in turn fuel the vast unregulated market of private sales that allow easy access to firearms for criminals.
Accurate information is critically important in fighting America’s epidemic of gun violence. Just as important, however, is countering inaccurate information.
Until the defensive gun use myth is defeated, Americans will continue buying firearms in the mistaken belief that those guns will make them safer, and gun violence will continue unabated. Countering disinformation is an effort all of us can and must engage in to end gun violence.
Devin Hughes is the President and Founder of GVPedia, a non-profit that provides access to gun violence prevention research and data.