STATEMENT: AAPI Victory Alliance Sends Letter to FTC Chair Lina Khan Urging Regulation of Deceptive Firearms Advertising Practices

WASHINGTON — Today, AAPI Victory Alliance sent a letter to Chairperson Lina Khan calling on the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to investigate how the gun industry, the National Rifle Association (NRA) and the National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF) are exploiting AAPI consumers’ fears of anti-Asian hate crimes to market gun purchases as a safety solution, in response to President Biden’s request.

AAPI Victory Alliance Executive Director Varun Nikore issued the following statement:

“The rise of gun violence and anti-Asian hate has inflicted irreparable emotional, physical and mental harm to the AAPI community. There is a clear and glaring correlation between the significant increase in anti-Asian hate incidents and gun violence across the country. For the sake of our collective future, we have to take a stand against a gun industry that is profiting from harming our everyday safety.

“The FTC’s mission is protecting the public from deceptive or unfair business practices and has a long history of protecting consumers – including children – from falling prey to deceptive tactics that result in corporate gain. Gun manufacturers who continuously capitalize on and profit from anti-Asian hate – from arming extremists to pushing weapons of war into our homes – must be held responsible for their role in proliferating violence. We urge the FTC to investigate and regulate the gun industry’s marketing practices that have resulted in the preventable deaths that have left our communities broken.”