With the campaign, designed pro bono, Frank Baseman wanted to bring in-your-face-attention to the growing murder rate and rampant handgun possession taking Philadelphia by storm.
After raising donations from local donors and businesses, the campaign was ready to hit the streets. Philadelphia thought otherwise. A mid-level government officer deemed the campaign too "intimidating," refusing to let it run in the bus shelters. Because staring down the barrel of a 2D gun is much more frightening than the fact that the city has become one of the country's most deadly cities.
Since that absurd decision, the story has been picked up by the Philadelphia Inquirer and National Public Radio. Now the poster is reaching a broad audience but not the intended audience.
Philadelphia needs to wake up, stop worrying about posters being scary and start worrying why its streets are scary. Shouldn't they be figuring out why its citizens have such easy access to handguns?
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Read more:
AIGA: Where Is the (Brotherly) Love?
NPR: Anti-Crime Posters Shed Light on Philly's Problems
Philadelphia Inquirer: Needed: Sponsor for a message of peace
A display too lurid for Murder City?
3 comments:
Okay, a 2d gun? Intimidating, that is just ridiculous!
Heather,
First and foremost, nice article. I wasn't even aware that this went down. Saw the poster a few times around town, knowing it was Franks, but I had no idea they pulled it.
Secondly, I'm not sure how well you know Frank or if you know him at all, but your title for this post is PERFECT. I had Frank as a professor at Philadelphia University, and "Pun intended" or "no Pun intended" was a phrase he used almost daily, and always to laughs. Whether you know him or not, it's awesome and it made me chuckle as I'm sitting here doing work late-night. So Thanks!
Hi Ryan,
Thanks! I also had Frank as a professor. I think he was my favorite, and I'm sad to say that pun joke makes me laugh. I even use it now from time to time!
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