Missouri ad campaign promotes safe gun storage to prevent suicide

The nonprofit Missouri Foundation for Health and the Ad Council are launching a public service campaign to reduce gun-related suicides in the state.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, in 2020, 49% of the 1,400 Missourians killed by gunfire died by suicide. Starting this week, people in the St. Louis region will see online and television ads educating about safe storage of firearms.

“As we were thinking about how to address suicide prevention, what really rose the top is the lethality of of firearms,” Missouri Foundation for Health Senior Strategist Jessi LaRose said. “When they're involved in a suicide really increases the chance that that person will die by suicide. It is by far the most lethal means.”

The End Family Fire Missouri campaign, created with the Brady Center, reminds gun owners to keep firearms locked away, unloaded and separate from ammunition. Named for former White House Press Secretary Jim Brady and his wife, Sarah, the organization is one of the oldest gun safety groups in the country. Jim Brady was among those shot during a 1981 assassination attempt on President Ronald Reagan.

Most people think of gun violence as between two people, but often it’s a case of self-inflicted harm, LaRose said.