Survivor calls for tourism boycott
Activists step up economic pressure on National Rifle Association
The National Rifle Association, and now the state of Florida, faced a growing backlash as companies cut ties to the gun industry following the latest school massacre, and a student survivor called for a tourism boycott of his home state until gun control measures are enacted.
The latest companies to end their ties with the NRA were Delta and United Airlines, two of the three largest US-based airlines. Both said they will no longer offer discounted fares to NRA members to attend their annual meetings. Petitions circulated online targeting companies offering discounts to NRA members on its website. #BoycottNRA was trending on Twitter.
The NRA called the companies’ actions “a shameful display of political and civic cowardice” and said the loss of corporate discounts and other perks “will neither scare nor distract” NRA members. “In time, these brands will be replaced by others who recognise that patriotism and determined commitment to Constitutional freedoms are characteristics of a marketplace they very much want to serve.”
The state of Florida was also facing a potential boycott and backlash as well. One teen survivor of the Florida shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland suggested on Twitter that tourists stay away. “Let’s make a deal,” David Hogg, a major player in the #neveragain movement, tweeted. “DO NOT come to Florida for spring break unless gun legislation is passed.” He later tweeted: “Better Idea: Spend your spring break in Puerto Rico. They could really use the economic support that the government has failed to provide.”
The swiftness of the corporate reaction against the NRA has differed from that of past shootings, said political scientist Bob Spitzer, a scholar on gun politics. Spitzer said the reaction was likely a reaction to the student mobilisation, but he said it was too soon tell how significantly it will sway the country’s wider gun debate. Sasha Costanza-Chock, an associate professor of civic media at MIT, said: “It’s this perfect storm of young people whose authority to speak cannot be denied because their friends were just murdered, have control of social media, the ability to speak to mass media, have celebrity support and organisational infrastructure.”
Dave Workman, senior editor of the Gunmag.com, said he suspected the high schoolers had support from guncontrol groups based on their increasingly polished arguments. “That may be more of a problem with credibility than an asset,” said Workman, whose magazine is the publication of gun rights group the Second Amendment Foundation.
US President Donald Trump appeared to begin refining his proposals for combatting school violence, tweeting that arming teachers as a deterrent — an idea he championed in recent days — is “Up to States.”
Expectations were raised that Trump would propose federal legislation on arming teachers, but that no longer appeared to be the case.
“Armed Educators (and trusted people who work within a school) love our students and will protect them. Very smart people. Must be firearms adept & have annual training. Should get yearly bonus. Shootings will not happen again — a big & very inexpensive deterrent. Up to States.”