The AR-15, the assault rifle used in the recent Nashville shooting that killed 6 – including two children – is the best-selling long gun south of the border and the most popular among America’s mass murderers. But that wasn’t always the case.
• Also read: First US state to ban the abortion pill – and the rest of the country could follow
The AR-15 is a semi-automatic rifle capable of firing bullets traveling at three times the speed of sound.
Originally developed for soldiers in the Vietnam War, the weapon has been used in 10 of the top 17 deadliest mass murders in the United States since 2012, according to a Washington Post tally.
AFP
The photo was taken in Nashville after the mass shooting.
Why is it so commonly used by mass murderers?
The AR-15 has a reputation for being accurate, light, easy to maneuver and destructive. Unlike automatic weapons, this semi-automatic weapon can theoretically fire no more than one bullet when the shooter pulls the trigger. The problem, however, is that the AR-15 can be easily modified. Adding a simple device called “Bumpstock” fires hundreds of bullets in seconds.
This rapid fire, combined with a hitting power up to twice that of handguns, makes it an ideal weapon for those looking to inflict the most damage possible.
- Listen to Guillaume Lavoie’s editorial broadcast live daily at 1:43 p.m QUB radio:
Banned since 1994
The AR-15 was developed by Armalite, a small California company, in the late 1950s.
Even then, its light weight, ease of maintenance and the fact that it can be modified made it a revolutionary weapon, so much so that arms giant Colt bought the patent to develop a more powerful one, dubbed the M16, for American troops in action in Vietnam in the 1960s.
AFP
Mass production of the AR-15 rifle for the general public began only in the 1980s.
But soon it was used in shootings, and protest movements were born. As today, the weapon’s detractors criticized its military appearance, rate of fire, and the monstrous damage its projectiles inflict on the human body.
Such was the outcry that in 1994 Democratic President Bill Clinton signed a ban on the sale of semi-automatic weapons, including most versions of the AR-15. However, manufacturers continued to sell legal versions.
Fueled by the September 11, 2001 attacks
When the ban on the sale of semi-automatic weapons expired in 2004, American arms dealers were ready.
A few years earlier, the American defense industry had benefited from an unexpected publicity stunt. In the fall of 2001, the war on terrorism unleashed by the George Bush administration brought much media attention to American soldiers and their M-16, the military version of the AR-15. The presence of police officers armed with assault rifles on the country’s streets had also increased.
Portal
September 11, 2001 terrorist attack in New York.
At the same time, the discourse of territorial defense found its way into American households. The context therefore paved the way for large defense companies, who saw it as a golden opportunity to increase their profits. In 2005, one of the country’s largest gun manufacturers, Smith and Wesson, which previously only sold handguns, began production of its version of the AR-15.
Success came immediately. Smith & Wesson said sales for its line of tactical rifles have more than quintupled in its first five years on the market, from $12.8 million to $75.1 million. Several other influential producers then successfully followed suit.
All of these AR-15s accounted for 23.4% of US firearms production in 2020, down from just 1.2% in 1990.
• Also read: Criminal revolution: 3D printed “ghost” weapons are making headway here and around the world
The country’s most popular long gun
The AR-15 is also popular with gun lovers who don’t have murderous intentions.
A survey by the Washington Post and Ipsos shows that as many as one in 20 adults, or 16 million people, owns at least one. According to the American gun industry, it is the best-selling long gun in the country.
The National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF), one of the country’s largest shooting associations, estimates that more than 20 million copies were in circulation nationwide in 2020, a number that is growing every year and especially skyrocketing after the mass shootings .
− Featuring information from The Washington Post, NCB News and CNBC