Gun Violence in Low-Income Communities: A Public Health Approach

Abstract

Background: Gun violence in low-income communities has been overlooked for many years, and its importance has become more urgent, requiring more research. Objective: The study aims to research solutions that can be adopted to help reduce gun violence in low-income communities while understanding what barriers exist that do not allow them to work. Design and Method: The study was qualitative and covered works from 2013 to 2022 with peer-reviewed publications, systematic reviews, dissents, opinions, editorials, and websites comprising the peer-reviewed literature in which the research methodology is founded. Solutions to gun violence were evaluated from previous researchers' studies and a results section, where they are detailed. The research was led through these research questions: What solutions can be placed to lessen weapon-involved violence in low-income communities in the United States? What barriers still exist that prohibit solutions from being effective in low-income communities? Results: The significance of this study is that a public health approach could be adopted to reduce gun violence in low-income communities while understanding that access to guns is a barrier instead of what the media portrays; mental illness. Conclusions: A public health approach gives members of low-income communities the power to make changes without requiring legislators' involvement. This is achievable through the remediation of vacant lots & abandoned buildings, non-profit youth advocacy programs, and more physician intervention in conversations about guns and mental illness. Keywords: Gun Violence, Low-Income Communities, Public Health Approach, Gun Access, Mental Illness