For years, Chicago, Illinois has been the epicenter of the gun control movement. The city has some of the strictest gun control laws in the nation yet they continue to have some of the highest crime and murder rates. And it's not coincidental.

In fact, police officers in Chicago have seized more than 9,100 illegal firearms this year alone. And it could easily surpass 10,000 by the end of the year.

From the Associated Press:

Chicago police regularly recover more illegal firearms than officials in larger New York and Los Angeles. Last year, the citywide haul was 7,932 firearms. The 2018 tally exceeds 9,100, and police say it could surpass 10,000 by year's end. Police seize an illegal weapon about once every hour, most connected to gangs on the South and West sides. Authorities cite two reasons for the heavy gun traffic: Penalties for carrying these firearms aren't considered a deterrent and, according to police spokesman Anthony Guglielmi, suspects tell officers they "would rather be caught by police with a gun ... than caught by a rival gang without one."

To help combat the problem, the Department of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) created the Chicago Crime Gun Strike Force last year. And so far, it's made little to no difference.

What's happening in Chicago is what Second Amendment advocates have talked about for a long time. It's sad that we have to continually reference what's taking place in the Windy City.

The perpetual cycle that takes place in Chicago is one that can be solved by allowing law-abiding citizens to protect themselves and their families. Gang members and criminals do not follow the law. That's the very definition of being a criminal! Implementing gun control laws hurts the law-abiding, not the criminals.

Think about it.

How many criminals go to a gun store and purchase a gun, where they're required to undergo a background check? Very few. What do they do instead? They buy the gun on the black market. Why? Because they're guaranteed to get the gun.

Limiting who can own a legal firearm for self-defense empowers the gang members and criminals. They perpetuate fear because they know the only other people who are armed are also bad people. That gives them the ability to keep power and makes police officers' job even harder than it already is.

Knowing that Chicago uncovers thousands of firearms a year isn't really surprising considering very few firearms in the city are legal. Implementing stricter laws on guns isn't going to suddenly make a criminal follow the law.

We need to get past this notion that everyone is law-abiding. They're not. There are criminals and they do want to hurt others. Once the people in Chicago come to this realization they'll then realize that their safety and the safety of their city starts with them taking back their right to keep and bear arms.