Engines Grants Historic Docs. In Brief Gun control opponents defend our constitutional right to bear arms.
Proponents decry the growth of gun violence in our country.
Gun violence affects children too, and not just in school shootings. Guns kill 10 children every day in America, according to the Children's Defense Fund . The group also found that 3,761 children were killed by firearms in 1998, the majority from homicides. Gun violence killed 84,000 children and teens between 1979 and 1998 and is the leading cause of death for blacks ages 15 to 24. Congress is now considering legislation that would require tougher background checks and safety locks, but it faces strong opposition from gun rights groups.