The gun emoji available on Apple's almost-ubiquitous iPhone devices is coming under fire from activist group, New Yorkers Against Gun Violence (NYAGV), Fast Company reports. The group is trying to encourage people to take a stand against Apple's inclusion of the cartoon in its emoji library using a campaign called #DisarmTheiPhone.
NYAGV worked with advertising firm Bartle Bogle Hegarty NY's intern group, known as BBH Barn, on the campaign which includes the social initiative as well as a video, which you can watch below. The campaign is seen as a way to shine a spotlight on real gun violence and the activist group sees the emoji's removal as a "symbolic gesture," NYAGV executive director Leah Barrett told Fast Company.
Barrett believes that because of other socially-forward actions taken by the company, such as banning images of guns from its App Store, coming out strong for gay rights, and including racially and sexually diverse emojis, banning the firearm cartoon is not that farfetched. "I’d like to think that Apple would put its actions behind its rhetoric," Barrett says. "It is seen as a progressive company." Even though Apple did not invent the emoji library, it has stylized the gun cartoon for its own use.
The video below details that by showing the support for the campaign "we'll show America wants stricter access to real guns."
