Cannes Lions

NRA Children's Museum

OGILVY, Chicago / CHANGE THE REF / 2023

Awards:

1 Silver Cannes Lions
7 Shortlisted Cannes Lions
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Overview

Entries

Credits

OVERVIEW

Background

In the U.S., firearms have become the main cause of death in children. National Rifle Association (NRA), a gun advocacy group based in the U.S., often bribes certain politicians to vote for pro-gun laws. This is the biggest reason guns remain the biggest issue in the U.S.

The brief was pretty simple, with the following challenges:

- How do we spark a national conversation on children being the biggest victims of gun violence in America.

- How do we drive national attention to the real cause of gun violence – politicians who continue to pass pro-gun laws.

- How do we create a mountain of pressure on politicians publicly.

Idea

Change The Ref, an activist gun reform org, decided to transform the most innocent and iconic symbol into a stark reminder of gun violence against children.

Every time people scanned any school bus, moving or still, they’d unlock the story of gun violence for children. They were then redirected to an online museum that featured real objects belonging to children who were victims of gun violence, inviting them to take action against politicians immediately.

Strategy

In the U.S, mass shootings have become the norm. With gun violence happening every day, people have become desensitized to the issue. The fact that 4368 children were dying due to guns every year had to be told in a provocative and powerful way, something that would create news across America. And the reason behind it all, negligence of politicians was also the story that everyone had to hear.

Execution

We transformed the most naïve symbol of childhood into a shocking reminder of gun violence. When anyone scanned a school bus on Snapchat, they found out that 4368 children had died due to gun violence in the U.S. in just one year. Enough to fill up 52 school buses.

This drove the viewers to a virtual museum where memorabilia belonging to children who were victims of gun violence were featured.

Outcome

NRA Children’s Museum led to more than 3.6 bn PR impressions, with some of the biggest publications covering it. It also dominated the online and TV news for more than a few days. The fact that 4368 children had died due to guns shook people up. There were 85000 tweets directly targeting the pro-gun politicians we were after, reaching more than 200 mn accounts. 5000+ news posts reached more than 25 million accounts. Since the activation, many NRA funded politicians have been heckled. More anti-gun bills have been introduced in the Congress.

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