So.... I came across this and figured this might be interesting for some of yall working on the front lines - its an internal document of Everytown & Moms Demand Action describing what specific wording and language they use.
Its actually quire interesting how the other side thinks, and how the think tanks hired to put this document together try to explain away in "mom terms" rather than just outright saying certain words tested better than others in their focus group.
TL;DR
- Avoid the term: “guncontrol.” -> “gun safety.”
- Don't say: “Gun owners” or “NRA members” -> Say “gun lobby” or “NRA’s extremist leadership.”
- Don't say "nearly 6 million members" -> Say “nearly 6 million supporters”
- Don't bring up the 2nd Amendment - > Say "we all want to keep our families safe”
- Don’t refer to those killed by gun violence as being “lost to gun violence.”
- Describe people personally experienced gun violence as "survivors"
- Don't talk about a tragedy's "anniversary" -> call it a "one/two/three year mark"
- Don't use the term "committed suicide" -> talk about people who "died by gun suicide"
- When talking about suicide emphasize that it is a "preventable crisis"
- Don't say "successful suicide" -> talk about "gun suicide attempts that resulted in death"
- Avoid the term "urban gun violence" -> say "city gun violence"
- Avoid the term "gang violence"-> say "group violence"
- Avoid calling communities "vulnerable", "at risk", or "needy" -> Use language that centers people's power like "Black communities in New Orleans have been historically under-valued, under-resources, under-invested in and that has led to more gun violence"
- It’s better to talk about “gun violence in Black communities,” than to say “gun violence in communities of color” when what you mean is Black communities.
- Dont say: “officer-involved shootings.” -> Use "shootings by police"
- When speaking about the boyfriend loophole, refer to “all people, regardless of marital status,” -> rather than "unmarried women"
- Dont say "mentally ill people" -> Say “people who are prohibited from having guns due to mental illness.”
- Dont say "ban", "restrict,”“control”or“confiscate” -> When talking about firearm hardware that should be illegal, we talk about “prohibiting bump stocks” or “ending the sale of assault weapons.”
- When describing people prohibited from buying a gun, becareful with words like “felons” or “criminals.” -> use person-first language and lean towards talking broadly, such as talking about “people who shouldn’t have guns.”
- (With respect to red flag laws) Avoid playing into the NRA’s messaging by skipping phrases that misrepresent our goals such as, “taking guns away” or “confiscating guns”— it’s more accurate to talk about “temporary removal” or “temporarily preventing access” when there’s a clear risk.
- Describe extreme risk laws as a “suicide intervention” tool, rather than “suicide prevention”
- We avoid the term “universal background checks,” -> We use the term “ background checks on all gun sales.”
- *Background checks are the foundation of any effective gun violence prevention strategy.* (WTF)
- We prefer “unlicensed sellers” over the term “private sellers.”
- We avoid “private sellers” because framing it as a privacy issue avoids the more important point - closing this loophole is a vital public safety issue.
- The gun lobby calls it “constitutional carry” — we call it “permitless carry.”
- Don't call them "gun-free zones" - talk instead about how "We all want to keep our families safe"
- Avoid calling it “campus carry.” -> Call it "Guns on campus"
- We track “gunfire on school grounds” rather than “school shootings.”
- Don’t refer to shootings by children as “accidental shootings;” -> we talk about unintentional shootings by children
- We avoid “safe storage” -> talk about “secure storage” instead
Its actually quire interesting how the other side thinks, and how the think tanks hired to put this document together try to explain away in "mom terms" rather than just outright saying certain words tested better than others in their focus group.
TL;DR
- Avoid the term: “guncontrol.” -> “gun safety.”
- Don't say: “Gun owners” or “NRA members” -> Say “gun lobby” or “NRA’s extremist leadership.”
- Don't say "nearly 6 million members" -> Say “nearly 6 million supporters”
- Don't bring up the 2nd Amendment - > Say "we all want to keep our families safe”
- Don’t refer to those killed by gun violence as being “lost to gun violence.”
- Describe people personally experienced gun violence as "survivors"
- Don't talk about a tragedy's "anniversary" -> call it a "one/two/three year mark"
- Don't use the term "committed suicide" -> talk about people who "died by gun suicide"
- When talking about suicide emphasize that it is a "preventable crisis"
- Don't say "successful suicide" -> talk about "gun suicide attempts that resulted in death"
- Avoid the term "urban gun violence" -> say "city gun violence"
- Avoid the term "gang violence"-> say "group violence"
- Avoid calling communities "vulnerable", "at risk", or "needy" -> Use language that centers people's power like "Black communities in New Orleans have been historically under-valued, under-resources, under-invested in and that has led to more gun violence"
- It’s better to talk about “gun violence in Black communities,” than to say “gun violence in communities of color” when what you mean is Black communities.
- Dont say: “officer-involved shootings.” -> Use "shootings by police"
- When speaking about the boyfriend loophole, refer to “all people, regardless of marital status,” -> rather than "unmarried women"
- Dont say "mentally ill people" -> Say “people who are prohibited from having guns due to mental illness.”
- Dont say "ban", "restrict,”“control”or“confiscate” -> When talking about firearm hardware that should be illegal, we talk about “prohibiting bump stocks” or “ending the sale of assault weapons.”
- When describing people prohibited from buying a gun, becareful with words like “felons” or “criminals.” -> use person-first language and lean towards talking broadly, such as talking about “people who shouldn’t have guns.”
- (With respect to red flag laws) Avoid playing into the NRA’s messaging by skipping phrases that misrepresent our goals such as, “taking guns away” or “confiscating guns”— it’s more accurate to talk about “temporary removal” or “temporarily preventing access” when there’s a clear risk.
- Describe extreme risk laws as a “suicide intervention” tool, rather than “suicide prevention”
- We avoid the term “universal background checks,” -> We use the term “ background checks on all gun sales.”
- *Background checks are the foundation of any effective gun violence prevention strategy.* (WTF)
- We prefer “unlicensed sellers” over the term “private sellers.”
- We avoid “private sellers” because framing it as a privacy issue avoids the more important point - closing this loophole is a vital public safety issue.
- The gun lobby calls it “constitutional carry” — we call it “permitless carry.”
- Don't call them "gun-free zones" - talk instead about how "We all want to keep our families safe"
- Avoid calling it “campus carry.” -> Call it "Guns on campus"
- We track “gunfire on school grounds” rather than “school shootings.”
- Don’t refer to shootings by children as “accidental shootings;” -> we talk about unintentional shootings by children
- We avoid “safe storage” -> talk about “secure storage” instead
