Christchurch massacre: real shock in US not the killings, but Ardern’s speed on gun laws

For Americans, the most surprising aspect of the mass murder in Christchurch was not that 50 people died.

The US has had two mass shootings in the past three years — in Las Vegas and Orlando — of similar horrific scale. The real shock in the US has been the clear-headed determination of New Zealand, led by its Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, to act immediately on gun control, including a possible ban on assault weapons.

“New Zealand Response to Massacre Puts us to Shame,’’ The Philadelphia Inquirer said in its editorial, striking a tone shared widely in the US media.

“For many Americans who have been calling on lawmakers to enact gun control measures for decades, Ardern’s quick response is inspiring,” the newspaper said.

“It is refreshing to see a leader shaken by a mass shooting and immediately work to prevent such horrific violence from happening again. But Ardern’s response is the norm. It is the lack of response from American leaders that is the outlier.’’

The reaction across mainstream US media in recent days has seen a similar strain of self-loathing, asking why the US cannot respond to mass murder in the same way as other countries, by tackling the obvious problem of gun control.

“There is a crucial difference between the two countries that is already apparent,” The New York Times wrote. “While Washington struggles to take action even as such shootings become more routine, New Zealand’s government is immediately diving into a detailed discussion of further legislative checks on guns.”

Australia’s experience of a drop in mass shootings after new gun laws were swiftly introduced after the 1996 Port Arthur massacre has been frequently cited in the US this week as the best and most dramatic example of a country acting quickly to protect its people.

“As a result, (in Australia) mass shootings disappeared almost entirely, according to a 2018 study from scholars at the University of Sydney and Macquarie University. The firearm suicide rate dropped by 57 per cent and firearm homicides dropped by 42 per cent,” Igor Volsky from Guns Down America wrote for CNN.

The New Zealand tragedy comes at a time when political debate in the US on gun control is at a stalemate, despite signs Americans are increasingly open to tougher gun laws. Last month, the Democrat-controlled House of Representatives passed the first major gun control bill to clear the chamber in 25 years, requiring background checks for all gun purchasers, including those at gun shows and on the internet.

The bill was a consequence of the new Democrat majority in the house and a willingness to challenge the powerful National Rifle Association. However, it is effectively dead because the Republican-controlled Senate won’t take it up, saying the measures would be ineffective and would infringe on rights.

The Republican-controlled Senate has been the obstacle to any federal gun control laws during the Trump presidency and despite a spate of incidents including school shootings such as one in Florida last year which killed 17 students and staff.

The Senate’s inaction on gun control has been made easier by an indecisive US President. Donald Trump has flipped and flopped and ultimately backed away from minimum age levels for gun ownership and universal background checks.

However, there has been progress on gun control at the state level. Last year, both Republican- and Democrat-controlled state governments passed 76 gun control laws, many in response to mass shootings.

Polls also suggest Americans are more willing to consider gun control than are their politicians.

A 2017 Gallup survey shows 96 per cent of Americans support background checks for all gun sales while 75 per cent say there should be a 30-day waiting period before potential gun owners are allowed to receive a gun.

The gun control issue has also become more high-profile over the past year because of the grassroots student anti-gun movement, which grew from student activists who survived the Parkland shooting.

As The Philadelphia Inquirer put it: “Maybe New Zealand’s response to this tragedy will remind our own representatives that change is possible, and we, too, can choose life over guns.”

Cameron Stewart is also US contributor for Sky News Australia