Annotated Bibliography

Collier, C. W. (2013, July 1). Gun control in America: An autopsy report. Dissent, 60, 81-86.

In this article, Collier examines the shooting death of Trayvon Martin, the mass shooting
in a Colorado theatre, and the mass shooting by a former Connecticut high school honors
student. He addresses the prevalence of guns in our culture and explores that these events,
while tragic, are inevitable in a society that makes firearms so readily available. He
maintains that in a society that essentially takes no liability for the damage that guns can
be used to carry out, we should not be surprised when these events occur.

Collier establishes just how many firearms are really owned and available to individuals
with little or no training. I will use the article to help me establish that someone with the
lack of training to properly handle themselves with a weapon in a stressful situation can
make harmful and tragic decisions.

DeBrander, F. (2015). Do guns make us free?: Democracy and the armed society. New Haven,
CT: Yale University Press. Retrieved from
http://encore.utep.edu/iii/encore/record/C__Rb3013447

DeBrander discusses the ambiguity of the Second Amendment, and how gun advocates
use this as an argument that the individual American must be armed as a form of checks
and balances against our government. He also discusses how the NRA takes the focus off
of firearms when a mass shooting event occurs. Instead they try to lay the blame on
mental illness, violent movies, and video games.

DeBrander, and his book, will allow me to examine whether there is any validity to what
gun advocates argue, or whether it is just a smoke screen. I will use the book to help me
get to the heart of the real problem behind mass shooting events.

Hodges, H. J., Scalora, M. J. (2015). Challenging the political assumption that guns dont kill
people, crazy people kill people!. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 85, 211-216.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/ort0000069

In this article, Hodges and Scalora bring to light the societal belief that mental illness is
directly linked to mass shooting events that have occurred recently. They point out,
however, that there is insufficient evidence to reach this conclusion that the media and
society are so quick to believe. They also provide evidence of how much gun violence
really occurs in America, how firearms are purchased, and possible solutions to prevent
future violence.

This article will help me establish that firearm violence really is a serious problem in our
country, but that contrary to popular belief the mentally ill are not at the heart of it, nor
are mass shootings. I will attempt to establish possible gun control policy that may help
to reduce the amount of gun violence that occurs.

Keidan, G. (2014). Talking about guns and violence: Strategies for facilitating constructive
dialogues. National Civic Review, 103(3), 48-54. http://10.1002/ncr.21197

This article discusses that one of the biggest problems about the gun control debate is
how passionate individuals can be about the issue. Keidan establishes that a real dialogue
between those who support gun control and those who are against it fails to exist in this
country. He examines a better way individuals in our society can begin to open the lines
of communication in a constructive manner. He gives examples such as, validating and
understanding all perspectives, being more careful about the words we choose, and giving
everyone a chance to be heard.

Keidan provides better ways of opening the lines of communication between the two
schools of thought that exist in America. His article will help me establish how we can

better start a dialogue that will help reduce gun violence in America. Continuing to argue
about the problem, rather than discussing it, will only stall society from finding a real
solution to gun violence.

Watkins, C. (Ed.). (2012). Guns and crime. Detroit, MI: Greenhaven Press.

In this book Watkins has taken various arguments that are at the heart of the matter when
it comes to gun violence: the accessibility of guns, gun control laws, background checks,
and students carrying guns on campus. He presents articles that argue each point from
both the pro and con. In effect he provides a reader with both sides of the argument and
allows them to come to their own conclusion.

I will use the material Watkins has collected to strengthen the idea that college students
carrying guns on campus can lead to harmful outcomes. However, the material will also
help me to view and present both sides of the issue to try and remain as objective as
possible.

Webster, D. W., Vernick, J. S. (Eds.). (2013). Reducing gun violence in America: Informing

policy with evidence and analysis. Baltimore, MD: John Hopkins University Press.

Webster and Vernick present facts about gun violence in America, preventing gun
violence involving people with mental illness, and how stricter gun laws in other
countries have reduced the amount of gun violence. The book points out that, contrary to
popular belief, the vast majority of guns used in crime were originally sold by federally
licensed firearm dealers. Therefore, a serious need to take a hard look at gun policy in our
country is in order.

I will use the book to establish why increasing the amount of guns available increases the
amount of violence that will occur using the evidence provided. In essence, there is no
need for college students to carry firearms, and the real problem is that society would
rather arm everyone than actually deal with the problem at hand.