More than one in ten American adults have a gun at home, and 11% live with a person who has a gun. About half of those without a gun say they would like to own one in the future.
Approximately 3.5 million women became new gun owners in the period January 2019 through April of this year, according to preliminary results from the 2021 National Firearms Survey, designed by Deborah Azrael of the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and Matthew Miller of Northeastern University. About 4 million men became new gun owners over that period, they found. This makes them nearly half of gun owners. Let’s talk about the history of women owning guns and how it compares to the present.
The History
A marksman may perform a variety of feats of skill while practicing exhibit shooting, often using targets that are not traditional to the sport. The shooting at an exhibition tends to emphasize both speed and accuracy, with elements of danger thrown in.
Female shooters have contributed greatly to the history of the Wild West by taking part in trick shooting. It took strength and independence for these women to survive out west, and no one made it far without knowing how to use a gun. In a male-dominated society, many women broke down gender barriers. Our nation's story is enhanced by the contributions of these women.
One of the best-known exhibition shooters is Annie Oakley, who toured with Buffalo Bill's Wild West show. Her preferred firearm was a .22 caliber rifle, although she could shoot well with a variety of handguns, rifles and shotguns. During the early to mid-20th century, there was a married couple called The Fabulous Topperweins, who were exhibition shooters. Adolf and Elizabeth, later known as "Plinky," worked together for over 40 years for Winchester as professional shooters. Plinky hit 967 of 1,000 clay targets using a .22 semi-automatic rifle, which is a record for a woman shooting aerial targets. Additionally, Plinky was the first woman to participate in the Grand American trapshooting tournament, and she hit 100 straight targets over 200 times in her career, as well as 200 straight targets 14 times.
The Present
Despite the fact that female and male gun owners are roughly as likely to cite protection as the main reason to own firearms, Pew Research found that women are more likely than men to mention that protection — rather than recreation — is their reason for owning a gun.
Several women have also reported that "civil unrest" and "increased violence" in their respective areas prompted their friends and clients to buy or consider buying a firearm. Women feel empowered knowing that they can protect their families and themselves, which is a significant trend now in the 2000s as the number of women being attacked in public has risen. Globally, there have been over 700 million women who have been attacked at least once in their life.
In the past five to six years, women have felt like they could use their constitutional right to defend themselves. There has been a lot of political uncertainty and fear struck regarding second amendment rights, which has led to a resurgence of firearms use with women in particular.
Gun manufacturers have also taken note of the uptick in women using firearms and have utilized this information when designing guns. Glock spokeswoman Kie Wagner noted that women “have always been around in the industry.” And the increasing pace of enthusiasm among women is new and demands attention from gunmakers such as Glock. The company has started showcasing new handguns that are easy to conceal and can fit smaller, more feminine hands.
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