Sunday, September 29, 2019

Violence and Men: Gun Control in Walmart


After the recent El Paso, Texas and Dayton, Ohio, Walmart has introduced a new initiative to eliminate any depictions of violence throughout their stores. Workers were told to turn off violent video demos and remove any signs or displays that depicted violence immediately. Walmart is also taking the initiative to stop selling rifle ammunition and asking customers to not carry firearms into the stores, even if it is legal to do so within the state. The new initiative comes as a way to “reduce the risk” of mass acts of violence from occurring again. After watching Tough Guise 2, it made me wonder if the lack of advertisement of violent video games/films will negatively impact the revenue from these industries, resulting in a lack of revenue for the firearm industry. While this initiative is certainly a starting point in terms of gun control, the issue lies within widespread society, not just local retailers. While the increasing amounts of violence depicted in films/games may contribute to increased violence in society, the issue lies less with the access to guns and more with the harmful stereotypes attributed to men asserting their manliness through acts of aggression. It is interesting that the article refers to the shooter as a “gunman” rather than an “assailant,” putting a gender to the attacker rather than de-gendering the situation.

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