More Americans have died in the past 50 years of gunshot wounds than in every U.S. war combined

Over the past 50 years, guns have killed more Americans than every U.S. war combined.

(Image credit: Getty Images)

published 13 June 2016

America has a gun problem, and the solution to that problem is up to fair debate. But there is no denying that in the past 50 years, guns have killed more people than have died in every single U.S. war — combined.

Since the Vietnam War, about 67,000 Americans have died in combat.In that same time frame, about 1.5 million have died in the US after being shot by a gun.Gun deaths in this country are just as common as car crashes. Guns kill more people than AIDS, war, illegal drug overdoses, and terrorism combined. And when you look back over the entire history of the country — stretching back to the Revolutionary War — you learn that guns have killed more Americans than all the wars we've fought in combined. [Vox]

Of the approximately 33,000 deaths a year, most are suicides, although an entire 11,000 a year are homicides. Mass shootings, such as the one in Orlando, are also on the rise.

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Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.