March 23, 2017 

 
Dear Fellow Citizens, 
 
I am here to talk about the topic of guns around our society and gun control laws. Living in a 
huge city such as Chicago, you might notice the amount of issues being dealt with guns. But 
you might wonder, what specific gun controls do you think I’m talking about? I do not mean 
to ban guns forever, but I do believe some people should be restricted or have certain 
requirements to own a gun. Gun control laws are laws that regulate the possession and 
purchase of firearms, including the types of guns that may be owned, waiting periods 
required for purchase, and classification of persons who are prohibited from owning 
firearms. I am supporting gun control laws. Every time I look at the news I see, a 16 year old 
getting shot to death, gangs shooting at other gang members and accidently shooting an 
innocent bystander. I’ve witnessed this in experience as well, a same certain incident has 
happened to a family member of mine. I believe that we should live in a safe community 
where no one should be harmed. 
 
Many people are afraid of how others are going to use weapons around them. Especially 
women. In one source it explains that gun control is needed to protect women from stalkers 
and domestic abusers (Arkadi Gerney and Chelsea Parsons, "Women under the Gun: How 
Gun Violence Affects Women and 4 Policy Solutions to Better Protect Them," 
www.americanprogress.org, June 2014). This evidence shows that women need to be 
protected from others so guns should be prohibited, so now women want to be feeling safe 
when they’re around others. But some people do not agree and think that these gun control 
laws invade privacy. They believe the laws invade privacy such as background checks and 
microstamping (Amber Phillips, "Despite Harry Reid's Growing Support, Gun Control 
Legislation Probably Isn't Going Anywhere in Congress," www.lasvegassun.com, June 11, 
2014). This evidence tells me that we shouldn’t have gun control laws because one might be 
invaded by the government. 
 
According to one source, guns are rarely used in self-defense. Some people may make up 
the excuse of owning a gun by saying they use it for self defense. “ Of the 84,495,500 
property crimes committed between 2007 and 2011, 0.12% of victims (103,000) protected 
themselves with a threat of use or use of a firearm” (Michael Planty and Jennifer L. Truman, 
"Firearm Violence, 1993-2011," www.bjs.gov, May 2013). This shows that people aren’t using 
guns as self defense but more as a weapon, and people would be afraid of the certain 
consequences that could happen. Others that are against the idea of gun control laws 
believe that gun control laws violate the right to self-defense and deny people a sense of 
safety. "The only thing that stops a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a gun” 
(​Washington Post ​Editorial Board, "The NRA's Simplistic Response to Newtown: 'Good Guy 
with a Gun,'" www.washingtonpost.com, Dec. 21, 2012). This evidence shows that people 
believe that if you use guns the right way, no harm would be done and that guns could be 
used more as a self-defense.  
 
Owning a gun has to come with many responsibilities. You need to make sure you are able 
to commit those responsibilities before risking some persons life or your own life in the 
future. The second amendment of the U.S. constitution is not an unlimited right to own guns. 
“[t]he right of the general public to carry a concealed firearm in public is not, and never has 
been, protected by the Second Amendment” (Richard Gonzales, "Federal Appeals Court 
Says There Is No Right to Carry Concealed Weapons in Public," npr.org, June 9, 2016). This 
example shows that an amendment shows that people aren’t informed and protected by 
carrying a gun. Yet, others disagree and say that having gun control laws makes the 
government seem like it is given too much power. "The Second Amendment isn't there for 
duck hunting, it's there to protect us from tyrannical government and street thugs… 1776 will 
commence again if you try to take our firearms!" (CNN, "Piers Morgan Debates Alex Jones," 
www.youtube.com, Jan. 7, 2013). This shows that too many laws from the government make 
them seem too powerful (tyranny) and people don’t want a government that is overruling. 
 
A final reason on why I think the government should allow gun control laws is because of 
suicidal acts. Many buy guns in order to kill themselves after they have been bullied or have 
been threatened by someone. More gun laws will lead to fewer suicides. “A person who 
wants to kill him/herself is unlikely to commit suicide with poison or a knife when a gun is 
unavailable” (Military Suicide Research Consortium (MSRC), "Information Paper, Subject: 
Military Suicide Research Consortium (MSRC) Summary of Suicide Prevention Best 
Practices," msrc.fsu.edu, July 18, 2012). This evidence might show others that without guns, 
people could live better live and reduce the amount of suicides happening because of 
guns. Some may have argued that guns do not lead to suicidal acts. "The theory that the 
restriction or elimination of guns would have a positive effect on the overall suicide rate in 
the U.S. does not hold up under scrutiny” (Jim Barrett, "Mythbusting: We'd Have Fewer 
Suicides with More Gun Control," www.thetruthaboutguns.com, Oct. 11,2013). This shows that 
gun control laws and lower gun ownership do not prevent suicides. 
 
In conclusion, I believe that there should be an increase in gun control laws. Many actions 
and incidents have affected this decision for me. As going back to the beginning of this 
letter, I have said that living in a violent city, Chicago, has made me think about the risks we 
could reduce to improve our society. And I know that enforcing gun control laws will help 
lead to that change in our society. I know that some might disagree and say that gun control 
laws aren’t a big difference in what will happen to our community, but I believe these 
opinions can change once laws are enforced. 
 
 
 
Sincerely, Sajeda Ahmad. 
 
 
 
MLA Work Citations 
 
1. Bindu Kalesan, Matthew E. Mobily, Olivia Keiser, Jeffrey A. Fagan, and Sandro Galea, 
“Firearm Legislation and Firearm Mortality in the USA: A Cross-Sectional, State-Level 
Study,” thelancet.com, Mar. 10, 2016 
 
2. Mark Gius, “An Examination of the Effects of Concealed Weapons Laws and Assault 
Weapons Bans on State-Level Murder Rates.” ​Applied Economics Letters, 
www.tandfonline.com​, Nov. 26, 2013 
 
3. Arkadi Gerney and Chelsea Parsons, "Women under the Gun: How Gun Violence 
Affects Women and 4 Policy Solutions to Better Protect Them," 
www.americanprogress.org, June 2014 
 
4. Amber Phillips, "Despite Harry Reid's Growing Support, Gun Control Legislation 
Probably Isn't Going Anywhere in Congress," www.lasvegassun.com, June 11, 2014 
 
5. Michael Planty and Jennifer L. Truman, "Firearm Violence, 1993-2011," www.bjs.gov, 
May 2013 
 
6. Washington Post E ​ ditorial Board, "The NRA's Simplistic Response to Newtown: 'Good 
Guy with a Gun,'" www.washingtonpost.com, Dec. 21, 2012 
 
7. Richard Gonzales, "Federal Appeals Court Says There Is No Right to Carry Concealed 
Weapons in Public," npr.org, June 9, 2016 
 
8. CNN, "Piers Morgan Debates Alex Jones," www.youtube.com, Jan. 7, 2013 
 
9. Military Suicide Research Consortium (MSRC), "Information Paper, Subject: Military 
Suicide Research Consortium (MSRC) Summary of Suicide Prevention Best 
Practices," msrc.fsu.edu, July 18, 2012 
 
10. Jim Barrett, "Mythbusting: We'd Have Fewer Suicides with More Gun Control," 
www.thetruthaboutguns.com, Oct. 11,2013