Create a way forward in the gun debate
Today, millions of Americans legally own and carry guns, while U.S. gun violence remains at alarming levels. These twin developments — the broad appeal of guns as tools of security alongside their role as instruments of violence — speak to an urgency for understanding and addressing the consequences of guns in American society.
The ASU Center on Guns in Society offers a path forward. The center has established Bring Research and Innovation into the Debate on Guns in Society, known as BRIDGS, the nation’s first think tank devoted to a social science approach to research on gun violence and a non-partisan approach to community debate. BRIDGS is led by Professor Jennifer Carlson, recipient of a MacArthur Fellowship, also known as a “genius grant,” a highly coveted national research award given to individuals who show exceptional creativity in their work and the prospect for more in the future.
Carlson’s work with BRIDGS is unique in its ability to shape the gun debate in a positive way. BRIDGS is comprehensive in its approach to collecting data and conducting research. Its work crosses political divides to enhance civic engagement and community conversations. Support from donors like you, who believe in a better way to address gun violence, will accelerate this crucial work. Your support will enable Carlson and her team to:
- Bring rigorous and thoughtful data to the gun debate.
- Help people understand the complexities of gun laws.
- Increase gun literacy.
- Enhance knowledge of the consequences of gun violence.
- Enhance civic engagement.
Specifically, your gifts will support:
- Continued research and data collection.
- The BRIDGS Emergent Scholars Fellowship.
- An annual BRIDGS symposium.
- The American Gun Experience Project — a national, comprehensive longitudinal picture of Americans’ complex relationship with guns, gun violence and gun politics.
- Community outreach and civic engagement, including the “Guns Unpacked” podcast and the “Gun Debate You Don’t Know” public lecture series.
- A Gun Studies Certificate that is available to the public.