The parents of a child killed in a school shooting orchestrated an elaborate hoax earlier this month, inviting a former president of the National Rifle Association and a gun rights activist to give commencement addresses to the graduating class of James Madison Academy in Las Vegas.
But there is no such school. David Keene, the former NRA head, and John Lott, a pro-gun writer, delivered their speeches to thousands of empty chairs. Those seats represented ‘The Lost Class,’ – the 3,044 teens who should have graduated from high school this year but were instead killed by gun violence (watch above).
David Keene, former @NRA president, was asked to speak to James Madison Academy’s 2021 graduating class. But the school doesn't exist. Keene actually addressed 3,044 empty chairs representing teens who should have graduated, but were shot and killed. https://t.co/ZoYUAVzI34
— Shannon Watts (@shannonrwatts) June 23, 2021
“We lost Joaquin three months before his graduation,” Manuel Oliver, who’s son died in 2018 at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida told Buzzfeed News. “We know exactly the feeling of being there and receiving the diploma without your kid being there. Because we understand that, we know there are a lot of people going through that same experience right now,” he added.
Oliver pulled off the stunt with the help of advertising agency Leo Burnett and production company Hungry Man.
Keene and Lott gave their remarks in what they thought was a dress rehearsal. They were later told the ceremony itself was cancelled after a credible threat of violence.
Neither man knew they had been duped until they were contacted by Buzzfeed.
“You’re telling me the whole thing was a setup?” said Lott, when he was reached by a Buzzfeed reporter. “No, I didn’t know that.”
“Ironically, had the men conducted a proper background check on the school, they would have seen that the school is fake,” said a spokesperson for Change the Ref, a gun control organization founded by Oliver and his wife Patricia.
The Former NRA President Was Tricked Into Speaking At A Fake High School Graduation | @BuzzFeedNews https://t.co/XfGB1Z5ros
— Change the Ref 🟧 (@ChangeTheRef) June 23, 2021
Both Keene, who is still on the NRA’s board, and Lott said they were encouraged to address gun rights in their speeches.
“You want to stop dangerous people from getting guns, but you don’t want to stop the people who are potential victims from getting guns?” Lott asked in his remarks.
Keene implored the fictional class to push back on gun control measures saying “I’d be willing to bet that many of you will be among those who stand up and prevent those from proceeding.”
Change the Ref posted videos of the remarks – intercut with audio from 911 calls about school shootings and other dramatic materials – to their YouTube channel. The duped speakers say those videos are heavily edited.
“We need to call them out, we need to show everyone — this is how they process the logic behind the gun industry,” Oliver told Buzzfeed. “We need to show we’re brave and we’re not afraid of these guys. We’ve already felt the worst possible situation. There’s no threat that can make me feel different.”