Both violent and property crime in the U.S. have declined over the long term, but Americans regularly say crime is up.
Americans have broad exposure to firearms, whether they personally own a gun or not. At the same time, most adults say gun laws should be stricter.
St. Louis led the nation with 66.1 murders per 100,000 people in 2017. It was followed by Baltimore, Detroit, New Orleans and Baton Rouge.
While Americans say their nation’s colleges compare relatively well with those in other countries, they offer more negative assessments of U.S. public schools.
The share of U.S. public secondary schools with sworn officers on site has increased in the past decade.
More than half of U.S. teens say they are worried about the possibility of a shooting happening at their school, with one-in-four saying they are very worried.
Last year, more than half of U.S. adults said they would oppose allowing teachers and officials to carry guns in K-12 schools.
In the week after the Oct. 1 mass shooting in Las Vegas, partisan differences were on full display in how elected officials responded on Facebook.
Malala Yousafzai's shooting came at a time when social hostilities involving religion were at a high point, both globally and in Pakistan.
About four-in-ten Americans say they either own a gun themselves or live in a household with guns, and 48% say they grew up in a household with guns.
