2 hours ago
22
If you follow GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump’s social media account or watch Fox News, you might believe that stepping out of your house means you’re plummeting into a dangerous, post-apocalyptic world.
You’re probably paranoid that strolling down any major city street could result in being mugged, beaten, or murdered by the usual scapegoats—immigrants. Because according to the right-wing’s favorite talking points, immigration and homicide are wreaking havoc on major American cities.
But here are the facts: Violent crime fell 3% in 2023, while murder and manslaughter dipped by 11.6%, according to new data from the FBI. And as for those big cities that, according to Trump and his surrogates, are in anarchic free fall? Crime rates there are down for the second consecutive year.
Urban areas have long been a target for Republican ire and right-wing media criticism. But the FBI statistics show that cities with more than 1 million residents saw the most significant dips in violent crime, with a 7% decrease from 2022 to 2023.
While the homicide rate surged by 30% during the COVID-19 pandemic, that number has since fallen and violent crime rates overall are now back down to pre-pandemic levels from 2019—when Trump was in office.
