Within the U.S., this is proven to be a fallacy with even a cursory glance at major cities that suppress Second Amendment rights. Rather than being beacons of hope for peace-loving citizens, they are wracked with violent crime and are the most dangerous locations in the country to live.
Now consider Brazil.
Under former President Jair Bolsonaro, the federal government emphasized loosening the nation’s restrictive gun laws. His measures proved so popular and successful that the number of weapons registered with the Federal Police soared to 1.5 million in 2022. That was up a startling 47.5% from just 2019.
This, of course, led to breathless warnings that the country would sink into wild western lawlessness. Sound familiar?
Only the opposite has happened. The Associated Press reported that “experts are puzzled” at a precipitous drop in violence in the nation.
The most dependable numbers come from the Brazilian Forum on Public Safety. The group reported Thursday that roughly 47,500 people were killed last year, which is a 2.4% drop from the year prior.
Even better news is that it set the low water mark for violent deaths since 2011.
This led to much handwringing among observers who predicted the sky would fall. How could having a more armed population result in lower death rates when the gun control lobby preached for years that the exact opposite would occur?
Simple. Violent criminals are wary of a populace that is armed and ready. A dangerous person is far less likely to prey on someone if they know that person is ready to defend themselves with lethal force.
Chicago, St. Louis and others could take a valuable lesson from Brazil. It is not in the best interests of the nation or city to disarm the people in the face of violent threats.
