NEW YORK (1010 WINS) – A City Council member is unveiling first-in-the-nation legislation requiring gun stores to display graphic imagery that conveys the dangers of owning guns in the home.
Council Member Erik Bottcher, of Manhattan, wants to drive home the message to help reduce gun violence, which is the leading cause of death of children in the U.S.
“It’s proven that imagery associated with text is an effective way of communicating public health messages,” Bottcher said.
He planned a news conference on the steps of City Hall on Thursday morning with activists from the gun control group March for Our Lives.
A recent court ruling by the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals paved the way for the legislation, which will be introduced Thursday .
“The U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that graphic images on cigarette packaging did not violate the First Amendment,” Bottcher said.
The councilman wants to take that approach to cigarettes, which is already used on tobacco packaging in other countries, and apply it to guns.