The anti-gunners seem to believe that if they make it really hard to get guns, gun violence will just go away. Just look at what New Zealand did after its most recent shooting. This, of course, is completely silly. For example, the Mexico homicide rate remains extremely high despite very strict gun laws.

Many Americans don’t realize how hard it is to obtain a gun in Mexico. The entire country only has one gun store within its borders. Those wanting to purchase a gun must also go through months of paperwork. The Mexican Constitution, however, does guarantee the right to own guns to both citizens and legal residents; it used to provide the right to own and bear, but that was changed in 1971, splitting the right to own apart from the right to bear.

Today, people can own guns in Mexico, after going through the very lengthy process. Only those explicitly authorized by law, such as police and military, can bear arms. This basically means that citizens can own and keep firearms in their homes, but can’t carry these guns to protect themselves from the powerful drug cartels that use violence and intimidation regularly. Mexicans can’t legally carry guns, but the country is still rife with gun violence. It is almost as if criminals don’t follow laws.

Mexico Homicide Rate

The Sun reports that 94 people have been murdered on average in Mexico every single day in 2019. If this rate continues, 2019 will have the highest murder rate ever for the country, beating the previous record made in 2018. In comparison, the U.S. has about one-third that number, with most happening because of gang violence concentrated in large cities with stricter gun control laws.

Much of the violence comes from changes in cartels, as factions split and fight to take over the trade. This violence has even spilled over into the tourism area, forcing the government to call in the army for support. So, it shows that criminals aren’t going to give up their guns. Cartel members carry guns, even though it is illegal, to force their will onto both rivals and citizens. American criminals also won’t submit to words on a piece of paper and simply hand over their guns.