School Shootings, Protests, and the Gun Culture in the United States.

This article examines how school shootings and gun policy protests influence public attitudes toward gun control and membership in the National Rifle Association (NRA), a key organization advocating for expanded gun rights. Using data from a 2018 national exit poll combined with state-level information on school shootings, protests, gun laws, and NRA memberships, the study finds that recent school shootings increase conservatives' support for stricter gun policies, while gun control protests reduce this support among conservatives but have no significant effect on liberals or moderates. Longitudinal analysis reveals that increases in gun control protests generally boost NRA memberships, but when school shootings and gun control protests rise simultaneously, NRA membership growth declines. These findings highlight the complex interplay between emotionally salient events, grassroots mobilization, and ideological divisions shaping the gun rights and gun control movements in the United States.