PLOS ONE: Racism, Gun Ownership and Gun Control: Biased Attitudes in US Whites May Influence Policy Decisions

2.11.13

PLOS ONE: Racism, Gun Ownership and Gun Control: Biased Attitudes in US Whites May Influence Policy Decisions: Stronger opposition to gun control by US whites has not always been the case. During the civil rights movement of the late 60 s, black activists exercised their right to carry loaded firearms in order to provide protection from police and extreme white factions [13]. The response from US whites was to demand stricter gun control. The Mulford Act was signed into law by Californian governor Ronald Reagan in 1967, and prohibited the carrying of loaded firearms in public [13]. The social landscape has changed considerably, and most recent data indicates a quite different view on gun control by whites, with 53% of whites wanting to protect the right to own guns, whereas only 24% of blacks do [14].