The importance of Sandy Hook Promise's new PSA

Last week, the nonprofit organization Sandy Hook Promise released a graphic back-to-school PSA entitled “Back To School Essentials.” The campaign follows the format of a common commercial marketing school supplies. Clips zero in on various students presenting items such as binders, bookbags, and colored pencils while ticking off how the item benefits them as students. But after about 10 seconds, it becomes clear that something is wrong. 

One student describes a red sweater as “must-have,” while securing it around school-gym doors. Another shatters a window with a brand-new skateboard while classmates screech and scatter in fear. Two classmates stand in a dark classroom gripping scissors and colored pencils as weapons of self-defense. One student rips off her colorful tube socks to stanch a bleeding wound on another student. In the final scene, a tear-streaked student hiding in a bathroom texts her mother “I love you mom,” as a door creaks open and footsteps approach. Muted gunshots and students’ screams sound off in the background throughout. 

The message is clear: While schools should be a safe place to learn — where the worst thing to worry about should be an upcoming exam — they’re often scenes of unthinkable violence due to rampant rates of school shootings.

Sandy Hook Promise was founded after the devastating Sandy Hook Elementary shooting on December 14, 2012, by families affected by the loss of 26 lives on that day. The organization seeks to honor gun violence victims and promote programs meant to protect children from acts of gun violence. The organization uses its platform to turn, “tragedy into a moment of transformation,” according to its website.

Since the Sandy Hook Elementary shooting, there have been 2,229 mass shootings (and the number continues to rise), according to Vox. Gun violence in the U.S. is a hot-button issue in our political arena, culminating in a radical divide, and has become a top priority. Much of the conversation is concerned with promising proposals for thorough background checks. However, it seems the U.S. has engaged in an endless cycle –– after deadly mass shootings, there is a resurgence in the support of tighter gun control, but politicians have yet to make real change. This is due in part to agitation between two factions –– those who support current gun control laws and those who support regulating access to firearms. In addition, friction between gun control activists and the NRA often result in gridlock. 

This chilling campaign in particular, however, has sparked emotional responses. On Twitter alone, the video has been interacted with (retweets and likes) over 300,000 times. Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., shared the video on Twitter, stating, “I just can’t breathe sometimes! This PSA shows the reality of what our children are experiencing right now.” Actress and activist Alyssa Milano also took to social media to say, “this is not the world I want for our children.” She continued and called for this reality to not become the norm in society. The same sentiment was shared by actress and writer Mindy Kaling, who said, “I don’t want to live in a world where gun violence is normal.” 

Major instances of backlash have not surfaced or gained much attention. However, many viewers have commented on how difficult the video is to watch but use this sentiment to promote the video’s message. The comments and reposts have overwhelmingly expressed the importance of gun violence education and the wake-up call that is this PSA. Some comments include viewers saying the PSA is unrealistic due to no presence of teachers and other adult figures in the video. 

Nicole Hockley, the mother of a young boy killed during the Sandy Hook shooting and a managing director at Sandy Hook Promise, told NowThis News that “this is the reality and gun violence is not pretty.” While she understands the PSA is difficult to watch for many, she added that the video was tested with several individuals, including her 15-year-old son, Jake, who survived the Sandy Hook shooting. He reportedly told her, “No, mommy, you need to show this because this is horrific, and people need to understand what we’re going through.” As Hockley concluded, “It’s a hard watch, but it should never be an easy watch.” 

This PSA is not the first produced by the organization to go viral — their 2016 PSA entitled “Evan” currently has over 12 million views and is their most successful campaign yet. But every PSA leading up to this most recent one focused on educating the public to recognize warning signs of a potential incident, while the new PSA was the first to immerse the viewer in a live shooting situation. Its intention, therefore, was to drive viewers to the site where they can download a comprehensive resource on how to catch warning signs.

While the gripping PSA is graphic, it proves society can no longer turn a blind eye to the issue of gun violence — even if that means making many of us feel uncomfortable in doing so.