US gun makers made over US$1 billion from AR-15 sales in past decade
- Two of those companies tripled such revenues over the past three years, a House investigation reveals
- Those profits have come as the weapons were used in mass shootings that horrified the nation, including one that saw 19 children killed in Texas
US gun manufacturers have made more than US$1 billion from selling AR-15-style guns over the past decade, and for two companies those revenues have tripled over the past three years, according to a House investigation unveiled on Wednesday.
Those profits have come as the weapons have been used in mass shootings that have horrified the nation, including one that left 10 people dead at a grocery store in Buffalo and another where 19 children were shot to death in Uvalde, Texas.
Those guns are often marketed to young men as a way to prove their masculinity, the Committee on Oversight and Reform said. Some ads mimic popular first-person shooter video games, while others claim the weapons will put buyers “at the top of the testosterone food chain”.
Those sales tactics are “deeply disturbing, exploitative and reckless,” said Democratic congresswoman Carolyn Maloney of New York. “In short, the gun industry is profiting off the blood of innocent Americans.”
The committee she chairs focused its investigation on five major gunmakers, and found they took in a combined total of more than US$1 billion in revenue over the past 10 years from the sale of AR-15-style firearms, which mimic the look of military-style weapons.
The revenue numbers were released ahead of a committee hearing examining the marketing and sales of the firearms that have gained notoriety because of their use in the mass killings.