Brady Center tells 'A Story of Survival' around assault weapons

What do you think of this US campaign, intended to garner support for the banning of military-style assault weapons outside the war zone arenas they are intended for? According to the gun violence prevention organisation behind it, Brady Center, 42% of adults in the USA live in a firearm-owning household, with 4.6 million children living in homes with unlocked and loaded guns. An estimated 76% of school shooters access their firearm from the home, and assault arms paired with large-capacity magazines are a weapon of choice for mass shooters, says the Brady Center. The ad takes the form of a US armed forces veteran reading out what sounds like an account of survival by a combatant in a war zone but is in fact the story of a small child involved in a mass school shooting. The veteran featured, Dan Kirchner, said he hadn’t given the assault weapons ban much thought before participating in the campaign, but “wanted to do something, anything to help end mass shootings in our country. Reading Josh’s experience, it really could have been told by any of my fellow combat veterans - that struck a chord with me.” The Brady movement originated after James Brady, press secretary to U.S. president Ronald Reagan, was left permanently disabled as a result of a 1981 assassination attempt on Reagan. President Bill Clinton subsequently signed the Brady Bill into law in 1993 after vigorous campaigning by Brady and his wife Sarah Jane. The Bill introduced new checks on all handgun purchases from federally licensed firearm dealers. “Since its enactment in 1994, the Brady Background Check System has blocked some four million prohibited purchasers from obtaining a firearm,” says the organisation. It advocates a multi-faceted approach emphasising education and legislation to tackle the issue of gun violence within the USA, because there are so many root causes involved. There are those who perceive increased government gun control and restrictions as over-reach; others who see it as essential to stem the tide of US civilian victims; and those who argue that military-style assault weapons are part of a global war machine that needs to be curbed because a conflict zone is always somebody's community. Your thoughts on this campaign?

Keywords: Brady Story of Survival, gun control USA, banning assault weapons, weapons PSA, Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence,BURN Studio