Someone at a local Walmart in Evansville, Illinois, apparently thought it was a good idea to pair a back-to-school sign with a cache of long guns.
Walmart Gets Owned
The sign, which reads “Own the school year like a hero,” hangs directly above a case stocked with the unidentified rifles, The New York Daily News reports.
Fortunately, a sharp-eyed Twitter user noticed the creepy juxtaposition, and it wasn’t long before the whole thing went viral.
Holy shit, WalMart. pic.twitter.com/FiMdAms0c3
— jordan ?? (@JordanUhl) August 9, 2017
And it begs the question: What the hell were these people thinking? Blood has flowed freely from horrific mass shootings in this country, and some idiot puts up this creepy display to help us remember this fact? For some Twitter users it brought up memories of the horrific massacres at Sandy Hook Elementary School and Columbine High School.
Walmart officials awkwardly apologized to Jordan, saying the sign should have been removed — NOT the guns. Um, anyone see the problem with that idea?
Yes, this is terrible, Jordan. This sign had no business there and was taken down as soon as we were alerted. We are very sorry. -Dean
— Walmart (@Walmart) August 9, 2017
The sign? I was talking about the guns. https://t.co/m5wgFNUQKV
— jordan ?? (@JordanUhl) August 9, 2017
And the offensive display brought up unpleasant memories for this Twitter user:
Damn, @Walmart wtf# you tryin to promote here? Hunting season or shoot the school up any kind of season? #Walmart#Shotguns#Guns#School pic.twitter.com/q8sOayiMKA
— ☄ leeanna may ☄ (@TeamBenjiDCMA) August 9, 2017
That’s when Walmart officials decided to find out which store put up the display.
Evansville, Indiana West side location (Red Banks Road) I lost a dearest friend to suicide who brought 4 guns in his backpack to do….
— ☄ leeanna may ☄ (@TeamBenjiDCMA) August 9, 2017
I have lost two friends because of guns. One was murdered and the other, who happened to be my best friend, committed suicide by cop. I’ve also had a gun waved in my face. I never have a pleasant reaction when I see these types of displays. Especially one as insensitive and flat-out creepy as this one. Don’t get me wrong; I know there are times when guns are necessary, but this kind of advertising, in a country where there have been more than 150 mass shootings and more than 6,880 gun-related deaths in 2017, according to Fortune, is irresponsible at best and disgusting at the very worst.
Screenshot courtesy of Jordan Uhl/Twitter