Sunday Times 2
The battle against gun violence being fought at the grassroots
NEW YORK — A sign outside a gun store in the United States was dead on target: “We sell guns to every Dick, Tom and Dirty Harry.”
Clint Eastwood, one of Hollywood’s enduring tough guys, played the role of the maverick San Francisco cop “Dirty Harry” in the 1971 crime thriller in which he took the law into his own hands trying to track down a serial killer on the loose. Described by some critics as a fascist movie, “Dirty Harry” helped Eastwood climb the top of the box office charts.
Mahen Gunaratna: Grassroots activism against gun violence
In one of the final sequences, he gives the killer one last chance as he menacingly aims a Smith & Wesson .44 Magnum revolver at him: “This is the most powerful handgun in the world,” he warns, “And it will blow your head right off, you punk.”
The movie, which did more for the oversized Magnum than any gun show in the United States, was a favorite among gun-lovers, including some of the lobbyists in the National Rifle Association (NRA) which has relentlessly campaigned for the constitutional right to the legal possession of guns by Americans.
But much of the violence – and most recently in New York City — is largely the result of the widespread availability of illegal guns.
And in the US, “Everytown for Gun Safety” is the leading organisation for the prevention of gun violence at the grassroots level.
In an interview with IDN, Mahen Gunaratna, the Chief Public Affairs Officer and Senior Vice President at Everytown for Gun Safety, said the organisation’s messaging — spread across marketing and branded campaigns — will be a combination of traditional communications, digital media, and grassroots marketing.
He pointed out that the organisation has two main grassroots affiliates, ‘Moms Demands Action’ and ‘Students Demand Action’, totalling over eight million supporters nationwide.
“The grassroots work complements extensive work underway at all levels of government — from town halls and school boards up to the White House, as well as in corporate America, in the courts, and at the ballot box — to change how the American public thinks of, and deals, with this public health threat,” he added.
Asked about the upsurge in gun violence, Gunaratna said: “There are many drivers of increased gun violence, but the one thing that’s clear is that there are proven steps we can all take to bring the number of shootings and fatalities down, ranging from safe storage of firearms to passing common sense gun safety measures at the local, state, and federal level.”
“For too long”, he pointed out,” the gun lobby blocked even the most basic safety measures, but thanks to the work of over eight million supporters nationwide, the gun safety movement has made unprecedented progress”.
Through victories at town halls and school boards, in statehouses, in corporate America, in the courts, and at the ballot box, Everytown has helped change how to continue building on these victories and reduce the scourge of gun violence across our nation, he declared.
An American of Sri Lankan ancestry, Gunaratna is a former Communications Director for Governor Phil Murphy of New Jersey, and who plans to bring his State Government, Electoral and Capitol Hill experience to the country’s largest gun safety organisation.
Gunaratna has advised federal, state, and local candidates and elected officials on communications strategy for nearly 14 years.
While working for Governor Murphy, he led communications efforts on two landmark gun safety bill packages that were signed into law, as well as a third pending legislative package on gun safety.
Prior to his current role, he served as Florida Communications Director for ‘Hillary for America’. He also served in a number of roles for former New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio and on both of President Obama’s presidential campaigns.
“With his deep experience at every level of government, Mahen is the right person to help Everytown spread the word about our work to pass lifesaving laws, create a culture of gun safety, and hold the gun industry accountable, both in the court of public opinion and the court of law,” said John Feinblatt, president of Everytown for Gun Safety.
“I’m excited to work with Mahen, who joins Everytown on the heels of spearheading the communications around two landmark gun safety bill packages in New Jersey, which were passed with help from our grassroots army of volunteers,” he noted.
In the US, there are an estimated 250-280 million firearms. But it is not possible to tell how many are illegal weapons.
According to the America Gun Facts website, the US has more guns than any other nation in the world — and that number continues to grow each year. Because of this constitutionally guaranteed right, Americans own more guns per capita than any other country.
Meanwhile, New York City, which was on a virtual lockdown for nearly two years because of the Covid-19 pandemic, has now been hit by a crime wave. The rise in crimes has been attributed mostly to illegal guns that have flooded the city.
Speaking at a media conference following a mass shooting at a Brooklyn subway station that left 23 people injured, NYC Mayor Eric Adams was emphatic when he said: “This is not only a New York City problem. This rage, this violence, these guns, these relentless shooters, are an American problem.”
According to Cable News Network (CNN), there has been a surge in gun violence in the US, with more than 140 mass shootings taking place this year alone.