Billboard campaign targets gun violence

-- Greg Risling

An Orange County organization that lobbies for anti-gun legislation has

launched an advertising campaign featuring billboards -- two of which

will be placed in Newport Beach and Costa Mesa.

The billboards will feature a large military-style assault weapon

plastered across its facade. The ads note that a majority of Orange

County residents support a ban on assault weapons, but that nine out of

10 of the county’s state legislators failed to support the same measure.

“We hope the ads will get people questioning their state representatives

more,” said Charles Blek of the Orange County Citizens for the Prevention

of Gun Violence, the group paying for the billboard campaign.

Blek and his wife lost their son Matthew in 1994, when he was shot by a

group of teenagers in New York City. The couple have become staunch

advocates for stronger gun laws and travel around the county speaking at

public functions.

Blek said research he has done shows Orange County residents stand in

unison when it comes to gun legislation.

“We found that many people in the county support tougher gun laws, but

they don’t know their neighbors agree with them.”

Blek said 20 Orange County cities will have at least one billboard

visibly displayed until the middle of March. The cost for each

advertisement is $600 per month.

“There is no coincidence that the billboards will be up until the March

primary,” Blek sarcastically remarked, referring to the important

election year.

The two locations where the ads will appear locally are on Anton

Boulevard near Sakioka Drive in Costa Mesa and Irvine Avenue south of

Mesa Drive in Newport Beach.