My Interpretation- There are levels to the interpretation of the 3rd poster. Firstly, the illustrator chose to draw girls marking the norms of the 21st-century gender roles, followed by them belonging to the two most controversial racial backgrounds – the “white” kid holding a gun and the “black” kid holding red riding hood which was banned in America for the usage of a wine bottle. The irony is that the white girl is sitting absolutely safe holding a gun which also gives us a cultural connotation of “white” being a superior race however the black girl who’s race is considered “dangerous” and “violent” to the world is sitting with a children’s book – the red riding hood which is a work of fiction and absolutely harmless. Therefore, the girl with the gun appears to be safer than the girl with the book.
USEFUL PEER INTERPRETATIONS-
ASHIMA- In the third PSA advert, we see a young black girl holding a copy of ‘Little Red Riding Hood,’ and a little white girl holding a gun. The text reads “One child holds something that has been banned in America to protect them. Guess which one.”
Initially, it is assumed that the advert means the gun, but ironically, it is the fairytale that is banned. The ‘reasoning’ behind the banning of the book is that she has a bottle of wine in her basket, which does not make it kid-friendly. The gun, however, isn’t banned, heightening the peculiarity of the situation. The irony, in this case, is that, to be very point-blank, is that although 15000 kids died in school shootings in the US in 2019, the guns are still not banned, while Little Red Riding Hood has harmed absolutely nobody, and still is illegal. Thus, the tone of the advert is sardonic, deliberately contradicting the meaning behind it.
Meira- The visual element of a child holding a gun next to another child holding a book is comparing a weapon to a normal everyday object. The irony is knowing that guns are not banned in America so by process of elimination the storybook is – which the child is ultimately using to protect themselves. The text below confirms “we keep little red riding hood out of schools because of the wine bottle in her basket.” When compared to weapons, it seems foolish/nonsensical/absurd to ban a storybook for such a minor reason when guns – which are not banned, are definitely not any less child friendly. Although we know that guns are not banned, we may be surprised by the fact that a children’s storybook is, even though we know the consequences from both of them differ hugely. This comparison depicts the illogical way in which laws are formed creates frustration and confusion within the audience.