The language of less-lethal weapons.

Area of Science:

• Medical research
• Public health policy
• Linguistic analysis

Background:

• Following the George Floyd protests, concerns arose regarding injuries from less-lethal weapons.
• Medical journals published injury reports, prompting calls to discontinue weapon use.
• Policy changes have lagged behind research advancements.

Purpose of the Study:

• To analyze how language influences decision-making regarding less-lethal weapons.
• To examine the minimizing effect of current terminology for these weapons.
• To propose a new framework for naming conventions that reflects actual harm.

Main Methods:

• Literature review of injury reports and scientific calls for policy change.
• Analysis of linguistic strategies used to describe less-lethal weapons.
• Development of a proposed framework for weapon nomenclature.

Main Results:

• The current language surrounding less-lethal weapons often downplays their harmful effects.
• This linguistic framing contributes to the slow pace of policy reform.
• A new naming convention is needed to accurately represent the risks.

Conclusions:

• Language significantly impacts perceptions and decision-making in policy.
• Revising the terminology for less-lethal weapons is crucial for effective policy change.
• Adopting a harm-acknowledging framework can promote safer practices.