The Shreveport shooting shows how Black women and children are at a higher risk of domestic violence

On Sunday, eight children were shot and killed in the deadliest US mass shooting in nearly two years. The gunman was the father of seven of the deceased children and the cousin of another.

Three others were shot and injured: the shooter’s wife, with whom he shared four children, the mother of his other three children, and a 13-year-old boy.

These killings follow the recent high-profile killings of two other Black women: Cerina Fairfax, who was killed by her husband, former Virginia lieutenant governor Justin Fairfax, and Nancy Metayer, the vice-mayor of Coral Springs, Florida, who was killed by her husband.

These incidents highlight the increased risk of death and injury that women and children face, especially Black women and children, from domestic violence and gun violence.

While domestic and gender-based violence occurs around the world, the ease with which domestic abusers in the US can get their hands on guns means that these already traumatic situations can easily turn deadly. More than half of female homicide victims in the US are killed by a man they know, be it their husband, boyfriend or the father of their children, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. On average, more than 2,500 people died in domestic violence incidents between 2020 and 2024, according to a 2026 FBI report. Firearms were used in more than half of those killings, according to a 2023 study from Cambridge University Press.

“Its a part of a larger pattern of violence against women that’s pervasive in our society across race and class. But Black women are at a higher risk of this type of violence for a number of reasons,” said Cheryl Neely, a sociology professor at Oakland Community college in Michigan.

Neely’s research has shown that Black women face a higher risk of being killed, in and outside of the home, than white women. Yet, their deaths are the least likely to spark media attention, widespread outrage and calls for policies that keep guns away from abusers and help women and their children escape danger.