Watch Amy Schumer, Obama, Spike Lee in Powerful Gun Violence PSA
America’s gun violence has been worldwide headline news, most recently with the fatal shootings in San Bernardino last week. The approaching December 14th anniversary of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting massacre, which killed 20 children and six adults in 2012, also makes Everytown for Gun Safety‘s PSA particularly timely. The organization describes itself as “a movement of Americans working together to end gun violence and build safer communities.”
In the video, the spoken message is simple, but powerful. Actors, comedians and even the President of the United States join everyday people, including survivors of gun violence and mothers who have lost their children, to speak the words, “We,” “We can,” “We can end,” “We can end gun violence” while Arcade Fire’s “Rebellion (Lies)” plays. The mantra resonates as the clip progresses. Amy Schumer, Spike Lee, Jennifer Aniston, Sophia Vergara, Julianne Moore, Nick Offerman and Megan Mullally are among the celebrities who appear in the clip interspersed with other participants. The video is currently a minute-and-a-half long, but anyone who would like to add their own voice to the cause can record themselves saying either “We can” or “End gun violence” and the organization will add that clip to the montage.
About halfway through the video, President Barack Obama says, “When we come together, Americans can do anything.”
Several of the celebrities participating in the PSA have been outspoken about gun violence. Schumer has been waging a “crusade on guns,” recently appearing with her cousin, New York Senator Chuck Schumer, in New York City Hall, and Spike Lee led an anti-gun protest following the premiere of Chi-Raq.