The Ex (target)

The Ex after it was hit using "Macho Gaucho" rounds (a type of 12-gauge shell) from a distance of five yards

The Ex, also known as the Ex-Girlfriend, and now renamed to Alexa Zombie, is a discontinued mannequin produced by Zombie Industries as a shooting target.[1] The mannequin's name, and the fact that it spouted blood when shot, caused controversy.

The target received attention after the National Rifle Association of America requested that Zombie Industries remove another target that resembled Barack Obama from a vendor booth at the organization's 2013 convention.[2][3][4] It was criticized by domestic violence organizations including UltraViolent, as well as the Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence, but the manufacturer claimed that it was not intended to promote violence against women.[5]

Doll

The Ex was a mannequin target with fair skin and a pink bra showing through a white t-shirt.[6] It was designed to bleed when struck by bullets.[1] Other zombie-themed targets manufactured by Zombie Industries have a green or grey skin tone, and the Ex was noted for being the one that looked the most like a living human.[6]

Reactions

The target became known after another one of Zombie Industries' targets was criticized for resembling the then President Barack Obama.[2][3][4] The company had displayed their bleeding targets at the 2013 conference of the National Rifle Association of America (NRA). Groups opposed to domestic violence criticized the target and started a campaign against its manufacturer.[7] Amazon withdrew the target from sale.[5]

Zombie Industries said that they included women as targets because doing otherwise would be sexist.[6] The company said that it did not wish to discriminate against or promote violence against women.[8] Amid criticism, Zombie Industries renamed the doll Alexa Zombie and promised to redesign the target to make it look distinct from a human woman. The company denied reports that they had displayed the target in their booth at the NRA convention.[1]

References

  1. ^ a b c Fairchild, Caroline (9 May 2013). "Zombie 'Ex' Bleeding Target to Be Discontinued Amid Public Outcry". The Huffington Post.
  2. ^ a b Benny Johnson (5 May 2013). "National Rifle Association Bans Bleeding "Obama" Target, Others Remain". BuzzFeed.News. BuzzFeed. Archived from the original on 7 May 2013. Retrieved 9 May 2023.
  3. ^ a b Luke Blackall (6 May 2013). "The undead prez: NRA bans zombie Obama-lookalike target from its convention". Independent. Independent Digital News and Media. Archived from the original on 9 May 2013. Retrieved 9 May 2023.
  4. ^ a b Morgan Whitaker (6 May 2013). "Obama the Zombie? Just a coincidence, says the company". MSNBC. NBC Universal. Archived from the original on 11 November 2020. Retrieved 9 May 2023.
  5. ^ a b Aidan Radnedge (9 May 2013). "Amazon pulls 'ex-girlfriend' gun target dolls that bleed when shot". Metro. Associated Newspapers. Archived from the original on 10 May 2013. Retrieved 9 May 2023.
  6. ^ a b c Kelly J. Baker (6 June 2013). The Zombies Are Coming!: The Realities of the Zombie Apocalypse in American Culture. RosettaBooks. p. 39. ISBN 978-1-62539-117-9.[permanent dead link‍]
  7. ^ "'Ex-girlfriend' target bleeds when shot". Al Jazeera. 7 May 2013.
  8. ^ "NRA blasted for allowing vendor to display 'ex-girlfriend' target at convention". Yahoo! News. 8 May 2013.