In the Americas, Homicide Is the Other Killer Epidemic

By Robert Muggah

Published in the Foreign Policy

Ravaged by a pandemic, a brutal war in Europe, and rising social unrest over unaffordable food and fuel, the world looks anything but safe. The combination of raging inflation, polarization, and conflict has many people feeling afraid and insecure. In the United States, recent polls indicate that worries about violent crime and guns outrank worries about unemployment, immigration, climate change, and COVID-19. But has the world really become less safe in recent years? A closer look at the most important indicator—rates of lethal violence—reveals a more complicated picture with points of light and plenty of shadow.

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