Americans are moving South in a big way, and a new analysis shows that Southern cultures are the most likely to experience shootings. We look at a breakdown of gun deaths by cultural region from Colin Woodard’s Nationhood Lab. Death by gunshot is most likely in the Deep South and second most likely in Appalachia. Where are the most Americans moving today? The Deep South and Appalachia.
While Northern areas also experience gun violence, it is often two to three times less common there than in the South. If we want to address the rise in random shootings, we need a solution that is appropriate to cultures that value and accept guns – not a solution imported from places where shootings are rare and guns are suspect.
You can find Woodard’s article on the subject here: https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2023/04/23/surprising-geography-of-gun-violence-00092413