Here’s Why the Surgeon General Wants Action On Gun Violence 

By Jennifer Porter Gore | Word In Black Overview: Even though Black people make up just 14% of the population, they account for 6 in 10 gunshot deaths. And gun violence is the leading cause of death for Black children. (WIB) – The nation’s top doctor declared last week that the skyrocketing number of deaths and injuries due to firearms has made gun violence an American public health crisis that needs urgent attention.  In a first-of-its-kind advisory, Surgeon General Vivek Murthy sounded the alarm about this significant public health challenge “…that require[s] the nation’s immediate awareness and action,” the advisory says. LEARN MORE: As Black Gun Deaths Rise, Biden Says Congress Must Act “It is now time for us to take this issue out of the realm of politics and put it in the realm of public health, the way we did with smoking more than a half century ago,” Murthy told the Associated Press. But a crisis for America in general is a full-blown catastrophe in Black communities. Despite making up roughly 14% of the U.S. population, data shows Black people accounted for 60% of firearm deaths each year between 2017 and 2021. Black people were 11.5 times more...