"Our children are not soldiers."

The Mothers Against Greg Abbott are fighting for change in the state of Texas -- and their latest ad makes a powerful statement about the state's lack of gun laws as kids prepare to head back to school.

On Monday, the women-led group released a 30-second ad titled "Back to School," in which a young Texas student prepares for his first day of school ... including wearing body armor.

The ad featured a mother getting her son ready for school, with the woman helping him get dressed and tying his shoes. After she snapped a black buckle, the mother then took a photo of her son in his first day of school look, which is then shown to be the child wearing a bulletproof vest and helmet. The boy posed for the photo with a grave look on his face as he held up a chalkboard that read: "First day of school."

The clip ended with a bold statement on the screen: "Our children are not soldiers," before then stressing for people to "vote for change on November 8th."

The music of the video also added to the ad's message. While the clip was set to a happy tune, the lyrics called out politicians.

"Little boys and little girls followin' the rules, gettin' ready for the first day of school," a male voice can be heard singing in the ad. "Politicians say they make our land safe and free. They're supposed to stand for you and me. Keep our children safe for you and me."

In the ad's description, the group stressed the importance of advocating for gun reform.

"Kids all over Texas and the United States are getting ready to go back to school, but something feels different this year," the description read. "Our kids are not soldiers, regardless of what the extreme right thinks. Whether you're a Republican, a Democrat, or neither, it's time to come together and demand meaningful gun safety reform now."

In an interview with Yahoo, Mothers Against Greg Abbott founder Nancy Thompson referenced the horrific Uvalde shooting, noting that Abbott keeps turning down common sense initiatives from parents and children.

"I mean, every single day we've been asking Governor Abbott for common sense gun laws, and he keeps on turning us down," she said. "Even the parents in Uvalde -- they put together a petition and they've tried to talk to him numerous times asking for common sense gun laws and over and over again he has turned parents down. He's turned children down. He's turned Texans down, and that's just not acceptable."

"First Day of School" marks the third ad released by the group, with the first two being released last month.

The first ad, titled "Nothing Changes," featured a diverse group of mothers -- who are from various fields and live in different parts of Texas -- as they powerfully detailed the changes they want to see -- and why they are fighting for those changes.

Meanwhile, the second ad, called "Whose Choice," tackled Abbott's strict anti-abortion laws. In the wake of the Supreme Court's decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, abortion was outlawed in the state, making it illegal in most cases.

"He took away women's rights to choose what they do with their own bodies," Thompson told Yahoo. "The fear that it's created, where neighbors can tell on other neighbors if someone has an abortion, he put a bounty on women and that is just one way to turn Texans against one another. It's just a horrible way to live. It's a horrible way to govern."

"I've never experienced a government actively seeking to hurt other Texans like I have under Greg Abbott."

The Mothers Against Greg Abbott Facebook group has over 56,000 members.

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Title: Texas Child Wears Body Armor in Back to School Ad From Mothers Against Greg Abbott Group
Sourced From: toofab.com/2022/08/16/texas-child-body-armor-back-to-school-ad-mothers-against-greg-abbott/
Published Date: Tue, 16 Aug 2022 22:46:57 +0000

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