Here’s a headline that should be good news: gun violence in America is declining.
After years of alarming increases, national data shows that gun injuries and gun deaths have returned to pre-COVID levels. In city after city, the numbers are moving in the right direction.
Except in one place.
Since the COVID-19 pandemic, gun violence in domestic violence situations has increased at an alarming rate. In Indianapolis alone, domestic gun violence deaths nearly tripled — from an average of 8.5 per year between 2014 and 2019, to 21.5 per year between 2020 and 2025.
This is not a coincidence. It is the direct result of decisions being made right now by the people in power.
Federal and state funding cuts have devastated the organizations survivors depend on. In Indiana alone, domestic violence services saw $6 million cut from their Victims of Crime Act funding over two years. Three programs have already shut their doors. The Indiana Coalition Against Domestic Violence estimates that up to seven more could close — eliminating 100 support positions and leaving 45,000 survivors without access to services.
At the same time, loosened gun laws have made it easier for abusers to access weapons. Following the passage of constitutional carry in Indiana in 2022, nearly anyone 18 and older can buy and carry a firearm — with no permit required. Without a permitting system or forced relinquishment, those who legally can’t have firearms have easier access anyway.
This is what happens when we defund the safety net and loosen gun laws at the same time. The people who pay the price are survivors — disproportionately women, disproportionately women of color — who are left without anywhere to turn.
We cannot talk about ending gun violence in America without talking about what is happening behind closed doors.
October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month. At March For Our Lives, we refuse to let this crisis remain invisible. Common-sense gun safety laws save lives. Keeping firearms out of the hands of convicted domestic abusers and those under active restraining orders reduces intimate partner homicides. And fully funding the services that help survivors escape safely is not optional, it is life or death.
The Violence Against Women Act is up for reauthorization by Congress in 2027. We will be fighting for every protection it carries and we will not be quiet while politicians and gun-lobby allies try to roll them back.
— March For Our Lives
P.S. If you or someone you know is experiencing domestic violence or intimate partner abuse, you are not alone. Confidential support is available 24/7 through the National Domestic Violence Hotline:
Call: 1-800-799-SAFE (7233)
Text: “START” to 88788
Visit: thehotline.org
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