Gun Control: A Sociological Analysis

The Second Amendment of the United States constitution gives all citizens the unequivocal right to keep and bear arms, and as the constitution outlines this right shall not be infringed upon by any state actors. But, what happens when this unequivocal right leads to citizens obtaining firearms, when they have a mental health deficiency, or deemed criminally negligent, and these occurrences pose a threat to our national security, and safety as a nation of free citizens? Politicians and citizens believe they can answer this question based upon a statistical analysis of gun violence, and mass shootings that occur across the nation. However, the true answer lies within how to implement gun control measures, while still maintaining freedom for all …show more content…
To accomplish this task, six sociological concepts were defined and applied to this article to obtain a deeper understanding of the information, these sociological concepts include deviance, crime, structural strain, presentation of self, social control, and social solidarity. First, deviance is “any attitude, behavior, or condition that violates cultural norms or societal laws and results in disapproval, hostility, or sanction if it becomes known” (Chambliss & Eglitis, 2015, P.131). Deviance can be applied to this article by the way gun advocates, and citizens protest President Obama’s gun control measures “as a gun grab that would violate Second Amendment rights” (Lichtblau, 2016). Subsequently, President Obama’s proposed gun control measures have resulted in “disapproval” and “hostility” among citizens who plead for the protection of their Second Amendment rights. Second, crime is “an act, usually considered deviant that is punishable by fines, imprisonment, or both” and to apply this concept to this article, crime is predominantly displayed by the simple fact that gun violence effects Americans on a daily basis as demonstrated through widely publicized mass shootings (Chambliss & Eglitis, 2015, P.131). Subsequently, President Obama desires to address gun violence by introducing gun control measures, which would attempt to stop, or at least prevent “…one act of evil…” (Lichtblau, 2016). Third, structural strain is “a form of anomie that occurs when a gap exists between the culturally defined goals of a society and the means available in society to achieve those goals” (Chambliss & Eglitis, 2015, P.135). Structural strain is present in the debate over gun control, because the president, congressional members, and citizens are attempting to overcome gun violence, while preventing the deterioration of the U.S Constitution,