The American woman is one of the largest growing demographics in the firearms industry. More and more women are putting their own safety and the safety of those around them in their own hands. Such levels of female empowerment are clearly not a new trend, but according to a recent Harvard study, women accounted for almost 50% of all background checks conducted between 2019-2021. |
 | Many women are purchasing handguns for protection and recreation. Regardless of sex, most people prefer comfortable handguns with regards to both feel in the hand and controllability of recoil. Another key area of consideration is being able to manipulate the controls (trigger, slide, safety, slide release, disassembly, etc.). According to NRA Women, the Sig Sauer P365, S&W EZ Shield (9mm and 380), Glock 43 and 19, Springfield Hellcat, S&W Shield, Glock 43X, Sig Sauer P238, Kimber Micro 9, and Ruger SR22 rank amongst the most popular models for women in 2021. This data comes from an annual survey the NRA sends to its members. Visit pufs.com for more blogs like this. |
All of these pistols are small to medium sized, have good ergonomics, good capacity, plenty of aftermarket support, and are chambered in 9mm or 380, with the SR22 being in 22LR. With that selection of calibers, the guns do not recoil violently, the ammo is affordable and available, and you can typically find other shooters with similar setups, make then excellent choices from a general preparedness standpoint as well. Those factors, amongst others are why women tend to lean towards these models; these models are not only comfortable to shoot, but can be easily concealed for personal protection. Most of these pistols can also be legally carried in most states, depending on the weapons configuration and state laws (features, capacity, etc.). |  |
 | There is a lot of innovation going on with female-based carry, and a lot of established companies as well as new ones are creating products to support the needs of female shooters. The above handgun models have plenty of female specific holster options from companies like Alexo Athletica, Dene Adams, Galco, Vakandia Apparel, and others. Traditional belt-based carry options are also employed, but are not always the most fashionable or comfortable option for some women. The combination of innovative carry options like leggings and purses, coupled with comfortable pistols means the specific and sometimes unique needs of female carry ensures they can comfortably carry, deploy, and utilize their pistols. |
According to CDC data, on average in the United States, firearms are defensively used between 500,000-3,000,000 every year. This information can only be based off of reported incidents, so it is not much of a stretch to assume the true number is far greater. In addition to this, the mainstream media does not typically report on self-defense cases where firearms, and women using firearms, resulted in a positive outcome. Regardless of personal beliefs, if someone does some very basic searching, they can find relevant and meaningful sources on social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and Reddit, that widely share firearms stories, which present a more accurate narrative of the current climate in America. In the latest CDC data from 2020, of the 45,222 firearms related deaths, over half of those deaths were related to suicides. So, without further delineating this data it means that a ratio of at least 1500 to 11 exists between defensive guns uses and non-suicide related firearm deaths. Many more women find that firearms ownership helps them protect themselves and their loved ones, with many with children understanding they need to be armed to provide the optimal level of defense. There are countless instances where women used handguns to end road rage incidents or home break-ins, and with a general weariness of the current cultural climate more black women are also using handguns for personnel protection. Copyright 2022 Pufs.com. All rights reserved. |
