This may not be a new low for the NRA in its ongoing attempt to sure up the profits of gun manufacturers. After all, as I pointed out recently, it was only a few days after the recent Orlando shooting before the NRA released a new ad exploiting that tragedy, in order to boost the sales of the AR-15. You know, because like Donald Trump suggested in the wake of the country’s worst mass shooting, things would have been different if patrons at the Pulse nightclub were armed to protect themselves.
Well, as the convergence of fear, propaganda, and capitalism would have it, in the ad below, the NRA has yet another exploitative ad.
From their YouTube channel:
If you’re living in an unsafe neighborhood and aren’t free to protect yourself with a gun today, what makes you think you’ll be free tomorrow? The National Rifle Association stands to fight for the protection of our rights. The NRA is Freedom’s Safest Place.
Watch the video below:
In the video the actress says:
“Gangbangers and drug dealers walk down our hall everyday. My neighbors and I were scared. We called the police. But they can’t keep us safe. Some of us are too afraid to even leave our apartments. But the housing authority told me, if bought a gun to protect myself, they’d throw me to the streets. If I’m not free because of my address today. What makes you think you’ll be free tomorrow?”
This is problematic for various reasons aside from the obvious already stated. Additionally, however, equally as problematic, is the fact that much of what is said in this ad is a lie. Yes, crime exists in the inner city. And yes, the projects are indeed a hub of criminal activity. However, there are no laws anywhere in this country preventing anyone living in any housing project that prevents them from legally owning a gun.
Again, it’s a lie.
If it’s perfectly legal for someone on the FBI terror list to purchase a gun, why then would anyone without a felony record who lives in the projects be unable to purchase a gun? See? That’s that bullshit.
Here’s the real truth: the NRA doesn’t give a damn about anyone who lives in impoverished underserved communities. If the NRA truly did, they wouldn’t fight as hard as they do to block legislation to expand background checks. They wouldn’t fight as hard as they do to block legislation that seeks to increase penalties for straw purchases.
(Which, by the way, happens to be one of the ways guns are bought and sold on the streets without the necessary background checks or registration.)
If the NRA really cared about the lives of the people in “the hood” as they say, they wouldn’t have to put out an ad like this. So why would did they do this? Because this ad is intended to stoke the fears of their many color-aroused white supporters. It’s intended to validate their fears.
After watching this ad, they’re supposed to feel a lot safer about owning a gun. And, in the event that the person watching this ad doesn’t own a gun, watching this ad is supposed to motivate them to buy one. After all, how else can one protect his or her freedom from the undesirable people of color of the world? Besides, you never know when a gun might come in handy should there ever be a zombie apocalypse, right?