According to the FBI, August 2015 was the biggest August on record for background checks for gun purchases.
WTHR reports FBI figures showing “1.7 million background checks” for August. This is the largest number of background checks for any August since background checks began in 1998.
Breitbart News previously reported that June 2015 was the biggest June for background checks on record, and May 2015 was the biggest May. According to CNN Money, there were “1.53 million background checks” for June. And while many pundits chalked up these high sales to the drive for self-defense in the wake of the heinous attack on Charleston’s Emanuel African Methodist Church, the continued recording-setting number of background checks in August would indicate the drive for gun purchases is broader than any single attack.
WTHR reports on repeat customers—especially women—are coming into Indiana gun stores to get handguns for protection based on what they see as growing unrest in society, rather than one particular incident.
With 1.7 million background checks in August, it is important to note that those who pass checks can buy multiple guns. So 1.7 million may not even come close to representing the real number of guns that were sold in August. Moreover, because Americans have been buying and selling guns privately since 1791, the figure of 1.7 million background checks does not include the number of neighbors who purchased a gun from a neighbor or the number of family members who bought guns from another family member, etc.
The bottom line—While Everytown for Gun Safety, Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America, and Mark Kelly and Gabby Giffords push gun control, Americans are responding by buying more and more guns.
Follow AWR Hawkins on Twitter: @AWRHawkins. Reach him directly at awrhawkins@breitbart.com.