A woman practices shooting in Jackson, Mississippi, September 26, 2020. -
CHANDAN KHANNA / AFP
From rural areas to large metropolises, an arms buying frenzy has gripped Americans, reflecting growing anxiety about the cumulative pandemic, high-profile violence and a hyper-tense political climate.
Noise reduction headphones screwed to her head, feet apart, Brenda Dumas points her brand new pistol at a cardboard target.
“Fight,” the instructor shouts.
Detonations ring out in the clearing of the Boondocks Firearms Academy, in the suburbs of Jackson, in the southern United States.
Political protests and tensions
“I want to be able to protect myself,” says the woman, who just bought her first gun and convinced her husband to take a shooting course for their 36th wedding anniversary.
"I feel a little less safe because of all the violence we see on television," with which "I philosophically disagree," she told AFP.
Since the death of George Floyd, a black forty-something killed by a white policeman at the end of May, the United States has been crossed by a wave of anti-racist protest.
President Donald Trump denounces chaos orchestrated by the far left and promises to restore "law and order" if he wins a second term on November 3.
"We have a president who instead of appeasing, is outbidding," regrets a man who also participates in the training, on condition of anonymity.
In "this complicated period", where far-right militias in places challenged the demonstrators, he too saw fit to complete his arsenal with a handgun, which he can carry on him, unlike his rifles.
A queue in front of the armory
2,000 kilometers away, in the New York metropolis, customers are waiting in front of the Coliseum Gun Traders armory which is always full.
“Firearms were not part of my lifestyle until recently,” explains Al Materazo, who came to stock up on ammunition.
In February, however, he bought his first rifle because of the pandemic.
“I immediately thought that people were going to lose their jobs, that there would be less money and that burglaries might increase,” he explains.
“I wanted to be able to protect my family”.
Since then, this white forty-something has bought a second weapon, this time driven by "the political climate and the riots".
On this Long Island sidewalk, Edwin Tavares, 51, notes another worrying factor: the rise in crime in New York where homicides have increased by 40% in the first nine months of the year and shootings in 91%.
"With calls to cut police funds and the denigration of agents", heard in the Black Lives Matter protests, "it seems that it is now up to us to fight against crime", regrets this man of Hispanic origin .
Soaring gun prices
Inside the store, owner Andrew Chernoff couldn't get over seeing so many customers.
“It's been going on since February, it's the longest trend I've seen in my entire career, it's crazy!
According to him, all profiles meet in his armory "from 18 to 80 years", "from the garbage truck driver to the office worker".
“Right now, there are so many new buyers that manufacturers are struggling to keep up,” adds Chad Winkler, manager of the Boondocks Academy.
"There are shortages of arms and ammunition" all over the country, he notes.
As a result, prices are soaring.
One of his clients explains that he paid $ 800 to buy a semi-automatic rifle which usually costs $ 499.
And in New York City, where gun laws are stricter than in Mississippi, license applications are growing.
“Usually, it takes six months, now we're more like 14,” says John DeLoca, owner of the Seneca shooting range in Queens.
Federal police statistics on requests for criminal background checks, mandatory for purchases of weapons in stores, confirm this rush: on average 2.3 million per month in 2019, they rose to 3.9 million in June, a historic record.
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