While Democrats use mass shootings as a platform for more gun laws, the ugly truth is such shootings will continue until we repeal laws that create the target-rich areas known as gun-free zones.

Gun-free zones present attackers with a setting in which they can confidently shoot innocents without fear of armed resistance. In other words, they deal out ultimate harm to others without fear of facing any harm themselves.

Therefore, it not surprising that 97.8 percent of mass shootings in the U.S. between 1950 and May 2018 occurred in a gun-free zone, according to the Crime Prevention Research Center.

Wow, 97.8 percent. Yet the Democrats respond to mass shootings with calls to ban AR-15s, expand background checks, restrict magazine capacity, and more. But none of these laws get to the core issue, which is that terrorists and criminals are attacking places where they know their targets cannot fight back; places where 100 percent gun control–via gun-free policies–render the people sitting ducks.

For example, Breitbart News reported that Pittsburgh Mayor Bill Peduto (D) responded to the October 27, 2018, shooting in the Tree of Life Synagogue by signing a ban on shooting AR-15s within city limits. This response to heinous Tree of Life attack is illogical, as it was already illegal to discharge a firearm within city limits, just as it was illegal to murder innocents. Neither of these laws mattered to the Tree of Life attacker, and they will not matter to other determined attackers.

Andrew Pollack, father of slain Parkland student Meadow Pollack, reacted to Peduto’s ban, tweeting:

The discharge of a firearm within city limits is illegal in every city in the United States. This is just another useless law brought on by Democrats. This will not protect places of worship from evil people who do not follow the law. #FixIt https://t.co/C7IoscZCux — Andrew Pollack (@AndrewPollackFL) April 11, 2019

Ironically, the Tree of Life Synagogue had no armed security on the day it was attacked and 11 innocents were killed. Another gun-free zone, another heinous scene. Yet Mayor Peduto rejected President Trump’s calls for armed security in places of worship, and instead turned the conversation toward gun control.

This is go-to approach for Democrats. They preserve gun-free zones by fighting to prevent good guys with guns from being added to the scenario. Peduto illustrates how they do this in places of worship, but they also do it in schools by fighting to keep teachers disarmed and they do it on college campuses by warring against campus carry for self-defense.

As long as there are gun-free zones there will be mass shootings. And it is the height of inhumanity to keep students, teachers, professors, and worshipers trapped in defenseless positions, all for the sake of furthering an anti-Second Amendment political ideology.

AWR Hawkins is an award-winning Second Amendment columnist for Breitbart News and the writer/curator of Down Range with AWR Hawkins, a weekly newsletter focused on all things Second Amendment, also for Breitbart News. He is the political analyst for Armed American Radio. Follow him on Twitter: @AWRHawkins. Reach him directly at awrhawkins@breitbart.com. Sign up to get Down Range at breitbart.com/downrange.