Black Illinois residents die by firearm at highest rate in US: study

The Hirsch Law Group analyzed 2024 CDC mortality data, uncovering the divide between groups. In 2024 overall, the US saw 44,447 deaths by firearm, at a rate of 12.8 deaths per 100,000 residents. Of those deaths, 27,593 were suicides, a rate of 7.6 per 100,000, and 15,364 were homicides, a rate of 4.7 per 100,000.

Looking at the state level, Mississippi ranks the highest for firearm deaths, at a rate of 28 per 100,000 residents. The five safest states were found to be Rhode Island (4.6), New York (4.4), New Jersey (4), Massachusetts (3.8), and Hawaii (3.7). The analysis looked at the year 2024, which is the most recent full statistical year available.

Illinois overall had a firearm death rate of 12.4 per 100,000 residents, just below the national average. When looking at specific demographics, however, some were safer than others.

It was found that the firearm death rate for white Illinois residents was 8.6 per 100,000 in 2024. For black residents of the state, that number jumped to 37.9 per 100,000, a 30-point gap over white residents. That rate is also around 10-points higher than that of Mississippi’s overall average.

Across the United States, black Americans had the highest firearm death rate at 25.2 per 100,000 residents. This was followed by American Indian/Alaska Native at 14.5, and white at 12.2.

Certain age groups were also more likely to be victims of firearm deaths. For Americans ages 13 to 17, the firearm death rate was 11.7 per 100,000 in 2024. That jumps to 22.3 per 100,000 for Americans ages 18 to 24, the highest rate of any age group.

A disparity was also found between genders. For men, there was a firearm death rate of 22.1 per 100,000 in 2024, compared to 3.7 per 100,000 for women. The Hirsch Law Group noted, “With suicide accounting for 62% of all U.S. firearm deaths in 2024, and men dying by suicide at substantially higher rates than women, the two factors partially explain the overall gender disparity.”