Brady, Casanova//McCann and The Ad Council Partner for the First National Spanish-Language Public Education Campaign on Safe Firearm Storage Targeting Hispanic Gun Owners, One of the Fastest-Growing Demographics Purchasing Firearms
- Brady, Casanova//McCann and The Ad Council Partner for the First National Spanish-Language Public Education Campaign on Safe Firearm Storage Targeting Hispanic Gun Owners, One of the Fastest-Growing Demographics Purchasing Firearms
- WATCH THE PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT IN SPANISH AND ENGLISH:
- “We are very proud to bring this campaign to life with Brady and The Ad Council to help our community.
- “Safe storage is essential to prevent a means of protecting your home from causing irreversible tragedy.
- The new public service announcements feature two Hispanic fathers who are real gun owners—not actors—sharing how they currently store their personal firearms.
- This new creative campaign will air on television, social media, digital, online video, radio, and print media nationwide, through donations made by Spanish- and English-language media.
- About End Family Fire
- About Brady
- About Casanova//McCann
- About The Ad Council
This Gun Violence Awareness Month, Brady: United Against Gun Violence, Casanova//McCann, and The Ad Council have launched “Take the Next Step,” the first national public education campaign on safe firearm storage reaching Hispanic gun owners. The effort, the latest from the award-winning End Family Fire program, responds to the fact that the number of Hispanic adults who own firearms has doubled since 2017.
By expanding the audience focus and adding Spanish-language educational materials, this initiative can reach one of the fastest-growing populations of gun owners in the United States, especially as Hispanic individuals represent 19 percent of the 7.5 million new gun owners between 2019-2021. The latest available data shows that more than a quarter of Hispanics own a firearm, or approximately 14 million Hispanic adults. And with such a dramatic increase in ownership comes a greater need for public education on safe firearm storage. As part of the new campaign, a new Spanish-language website, DaElSiguientePaso.org, was launched, featuring videos and resources in Spanish.
Developed pro bono by Casanova//McCann, an integrated marketing agency specializing in reaching Hispanic audiences, this new campaign focuses on reaching Spanish- and English-speaking parents who own firearms. The work builds on and further expands the existing End Family Fire efforts, which encourage gun owners to take the next step by storing all their firearms more safely.
WATCH THE PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT IN SPANISH AND ENGLISH:
Currently, in the United States, approximately 4.6 million children live in a home with access to loaded and unlocked firearms. According to a study from the Journal of the American Medical Association, even though 70 percent of parents believe their child cannot access firearms within the home, more than 30 percent of children from those households reported being able to access a firearm in less than five minutes.
Family fire, or ‘family fire,’ refers to a shooting caused by someone who has access to a firearm from the home when they should not; this includes children, as well as those exhibiting behavior that indicates they could harm themselves or others by accessing a firearm.
Access to unsecured firearms in the home can lead to a wide range of gun violence, including unintentional shootings, intentional shootings, and firearm suicides, all of which can be prevented through safe firearm storage.
“We are very proud to bring this campaign to life with Brady and The Ad Council to help our community.
While the data shows the need, we were surprised by the lack of information available for Hispanic gun owners,” said Ingrid Smart, president/CEO of Casanova//McCann. “As parents, it was very meaningful to have this opportunity, and we are grateful to the End Family Fire team for trusting and supporting us. We hope this work reaches gun owners and creates lasting change.”
“When people make the decision to purchase a firearm for the home, they often do so with protection in mind, but protection does not immediately equal safety,” stated Kris Brown, president of Brady: United Against Gun Violence.
“Safe storage is essential to prevent a means of protecting your home from causing irreversible tragedy.
With the number of Hispanic gun owners doubling in recent years, a national Spanish-language campaign is vital to eliminate barriers Hispanic speakers face in accessing education on safe firearm storage. We are grateful for this critical partnership with Casanova and The Ad Council, which will ensure that nearly 14 million Hispanic gun owners have the resources they need to take the next step and end family fire.”
“As a parent, you want your home to be the safest place for your children,” said Michelle Hillman, chief campaign development officer at The Ad Council. “We are grateful to our incredible partners at Brady and Casanova//McCann for their collaboration and commitment to reaching the Hispanic audience with such a critical issue. We hope that through this lifesaving work, gun owners across the United States will feel inspired to take the next step to protect their homes and communities by safely storing their firearms.”
The new public service announcements feature two Hispanic fathers who are real gun owners—not actors—sharing how they currently store their personal firearms.
The fathers are presented with moving letters written by parents whose children died in firearm-related tragedies, emphasizing the importance of safe firearm storage and urging the two fathers to reconsider their storage habits in real time. The ad concludes by encouraging viewers to visit EndFamilyFire.org and DaElSiguientePaso.org for information on safe firearm storage and resources to help prevent shooting injuries and deaths.
Since 2018, End Family Fire has been working to change how gun owners think about and store their firearms. Gun violence is an issue that affects everyone, and by including gun owners in the research, development, and production, the program intentionally incorporates these voices as part of the solution to reduce preventable firearm deaths.
To date, End Family Fire has raised over $120 million in donated media and more than 5.2 billion impressions and has demonstrated success in changing attitudes and behaviors around gun use and safe storage: According to a study by The Ad Council, 42 percent of respondents with a child in the home who are aware of the End Family Fire campaign reported having sought information on safe firearm storage in the past 12 months, compared to 10 percent of those who are not aware. (Source: The Ad Council’s online survey of 1,815 U.S. adults residing in gun-owning households, conducted by Ipsos from January 1 to March 31, 2024).
This new creative campaign will air on television, social media, digital, online video, radio, and print media nationwide, through donations made by Spanish- and English-language media.
TelevisaUnivision is providing additional support to ensure the new public service announcements (PSAs) reach the intended audience through donated television, social, and digital inventory. Other audio resources available in the future will be produced by SiriusXM Media’s Studio Resonate and will feature donated inventory support. For more information about End Family Fire and how to promote responsible gun ownership, visit EndFamilyFire.org or DaElSiguientePaso.org.
About End Family Fire
End Family Fire, a joint effort by Brady and The Ad Council, promotes safe gun storage by giving a name to preventable tragedies that occur when firearms are misused in the home. “Family fire,” a term developed for the campaign, refers to a shooting caused by someone who has access to a firearm from their home when they should not. This includes children, as well as those exhibiting behavior that indicates they could harm themselves or others. The national public education program raises awareness about the issue of family fire, gives gun owners a role in preventing firearm deaths and injuries, and encourages a national dialogue about safe storage practices, all of which can help prevent family fire tragedies.
End Family Fire (formerly known as the ASKing Saves Kids, or ASK, campaign) was rated as the only effective national safe storage education effort by the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) in an analysis that included notable programs from gun organizations nationwide.
About Brady
The United States has more guns than people. And that corresponds to a firearm homicide rate that is 26 times higher than other high-income countries. Brady, the nation’s oldest gun violence prevention organization, works to enact sensible solutions to free America from gun violence. We address three critical areas: changing laws, changing the industry, and changing the culture. This three-pronged strategy is unique in the movement and follows the roadmap behind other successful public health campaigns, such as those related to youth smoking, seat belt use, and drunk driving. By changing hearts and minds, fostering a culture of responsible gun use and ownership, we can free America from gun violence. Join the movement at bradyunited.org.
About Casanova//McCann
Casanova//McCann is one of the leading Hispanic integrated communications agencies in the U.S. Founded in 1984, the company is headquartered in Costa Mesa, California, and handles Hispanic advertising and integrated communications services for clients such as Nestlé, Chevrolet, Pernod Ricard, US Postal Service, U.S. Bank, among others. Casanova became a certified minority- and women-owned agency in 2020 and continues to be a McCann affiliate.
About The Ad Council
The Ad Council convenes creative storytellers to educate, unite, and uplift audiences by opening hearts, inspiring action, and accelerating change around the most pressing issues in America. Since the nonprofit’s founding, the organization and its partners in advertising, media, marketing, and technology have been behind some of the country’s most iconic social impact campaigns: Smokey Bear, A Mind Is a Terrible Thing to Waste, Love Has No Labels, Tear the Paper Ceiling, and many more.
With a current focus on mental health, safe gun ownership and handling, the opioid epidemic, skills-based hiring, and other critical issues, The Ad Council’s national campaigns encompass advertising and media content, grassroots and community efforts, trusted spokesperson and influencer engagement, employer programs, and other innovative strategies to move the needle on today’s most important issues.
For more information or to get involved, visit AdCouncil.org, join The Ad Council’s communities on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and X, and view campaign creativity on YouTube.
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SOURCE The Ad Council
CONTACTS: Ben Dorf, The Ad Council, Bdorf@adcouncil.org; Colleen Creighton, Brady: United Against Gun Violence, ccreighton@bradyunited.org; Ingrid Smart, Casanova//McCann, ingrid.smart@casanova.com
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