Gun control has become an immediate issue in the United States making the topic very controversial today. It is heavily argued due to the direct and indirect effects it has had on the everyday lives of American citizens and has become more common in the past several years. Comparing the gun laws the United States has implaced to other countries, our gun laws are evidently more lenient than others. Supporters argue about our founding fathers implementing the 2nd Amendment, “the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed,” while those for the gun control argument point out how out of touch the guns back in the day were to those that we currently have. This technological transformation throughout history aids to the argument and pressure to strengthen gun control in the US because of tragedies gun violence has caused throughout the years. Whilst more tragedies occur, the topic continues to gain momentum; parents around America have lost countless numbers of children to gun violence, and one organization of mothers decided to take a stand in hopes of a change.
Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America is an organization that encourages the reformation of gun laws and is known as a response to the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School. Their goal is to create “common-sense solutions that can help decrease the escalating epidemic of gun violence” (MDA) by implementing laws that require a more thorough background check, prohibiting major assault weapons, banning online commerce, as well as other safety precautions. In order to raise awareness to the issue, they began an ad campaign that caught the attention of many due to the emotional connection it provides that reveals an overwhelming and eye opening perspective. To get a better understanding of the point being made, the creators use rhetorical devices such as pathos, logos and ethos through connecting emotion to imagery, establishing credibility, and providing facts to make the message clearer and more valued.
MDA released a series of ads that shared a common theme of two subjects, one with a weapon and one not, with the recurring question of if this item is banned in the US, “why not assault weapons?” In image one, the scene seems to take place in an elementary library. The US flag is also placed in the background, in a way to convey the message of which exact country the children are in. The children are both of different ethnic backgrounds, one being an African American whilst the other being a white American, both with a solemn expression appearing on their faces. Both are shown sitting on a floor in a timid way, expressing innocence in the situation they have been placed in. This can have an emotional impact on the viewer because of the common events of school shootings and how much they have affected the fight for more gun control. The one on the left is seen to be holding a worldwide known children’s book, “Little Red Riding Hood”, which the ad states is kept out of schools because of the wine bottle the book mentions. On the right, the white American child holds an automatic assault weapon. The ad includes text above both of the children that is unavoidable, “One child is holding something that’s been banned in America to protect them. Guess which one”. The picture is posed to show the obvious danger of this assault weapon, but also show irony as it is meant to leave the audience in a certain state of shock when revealing the answer is the innocent book we’ve all read countless times in our childhood, not the weapon that has been used to kill. This is MDA’s way of persuading the viewers by the use of pathos, in attempt to relate to a childhood story as well as associating one’s emotions with the destruction of innocence taking place.
Image 2 is also from the campaign series released by MDA. While there are various similarities, they are also quite the amount of differences between the two. It too is also held in a school setting, this time in a classroom, filled with desks, books, and posters that one would normally identify to an elementary classroom. Although there are some differences, MDA uses the element of repetition as a way of promotion of their ads. They are two students standing in front of a chalkboard, also coming from different ethnic backgrounds. One is a young male child of an Asian American background, while the other subject is a female white American child. The male student holds a Kinder egg, and the female student holds an automatic assault weapon. They both appear guiltless, yet show sympathetic looks as they stare directly into the camera. The ads being a campaign follow the same catch phrase, “Guess which one”. The most common sense answer to the question posed would be the Kinder egg, why would we ban a choice of candy from a child? It yet again causes shock and anger from the audience, further pushing the message of gun violence and shows MDA’s choice of logos by providing facts through comparing both items. Why can we find ourselves at ease to ban an ordinary item yet not a weapon that can commit mass murder?
Comparing both ads, you will find yourself with plenty of similarities yet also some differences. While the settings do remain the same in the way that they both take place in different rooms of elementary school, they are not identical. The ads also always seems to include a minority in every image holding the innocent yet banned item, while the white American holds the assault weapon. They both also continually ridicule the way that such an ordinary item can be banned. Both include the same text and message in order to focus on the intention of the campaign and to familiarize the audience in general. MDA is also successful at using ethos by establishing their credibility as an official and trustworthy organization. Their explanation and reasoning in both ads tie them together to get the main point across, that they stand for immediate gun control.
Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America touched on some very emotional and relevant issues in America by the creation of their ad campaign. Their ads were effective in ethos, pathos, and logos. By including the name of their organization on each and every one of their ads, they successfully established their credibility to their audience. Their use of school children is an efficient use of pathos because gun control is an issue that affects many families and parents in the present day. They continued to exemplify on the use of pathos by using children who are usually used to symbolize innocence, good, and purity, and that image is quickly disturbed by adding a gun which usually represents violence. After Sandy Hook, relating children to guns has an especially emotional effect on American citizens. Sandy Hook and other gun related tragedies have made these advertisements relevant to US citizens. This makes the ad much more effective. People are interested and involved in the gun control debate, so there is likely to be a strong audience reaction, both positive and negative, to the ads and any reaction is a good reaction. It means the message is being received.
As the US continues to battle the issue of whether gun control measures will finally be taken, Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America manage to prove their case and the necessity for reform in our lenient gun laws.