Indianapolis targeted in campaign trying to steer teens from gun violence

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — Indianapolis is one of a dozen cities being targeted by Project Unloaded.

The group is launching videos on TikTok educating kids on the dangers of guns.

Nina Vinik, founder and executive director of Project Unloaded, said, “Today, gun violence is the leading killer of children and teens in the United States.”

“We wanted to be in a diverse set of cities that really have large, diverse populations of young people, so we chose Indianapolis because it fit that bill.”

The campaign is called “SNUG,” which stands for “Safer Not Using Guns.” TikTok users from ages 13-17 are the targets of the campaign.

“We’re working with a group of TikTok influencers who are posting videos about why they have chosen to be SNUG,” Vinik said.

Vinilk says reaching kids is important since research shows they make up their minds about guns at an early age. “We know that by the time we get to be adults, we tend to be pretty set in our ways, and our views around a lot of topics tend to become solidified.”

After the SNUG campaign launched in the fall, Project Unloaded says 20% of teens who were exposed to it changed their views against gun ownership. Organizers compare their social media effort to the advertisements in the 1990s designed to steer a generation of teens away from cigarette smoking.