The Weeknd terminated deal with H&M over racist ad

The Weeknd “deeply offended” by a racist ad by H&M

borkena
January 8,2017

(Toronto) – Perhaps H&M’s deal with Ethio-Canadian R&B star , The Weeknd, was the best marketing strategy but it got another online ad terribly wrong so much so that The weeknd (Abel Tesfaye) was “shocked” and had to terminate deal with H&M.

What “shocked” and “deeply offended” Abel was the multinational retailer ad that shows a black child in a hoodie with a label “Coolest monkey in the jungle”

Abel Tesfaye tweeted :

“woke up this morning shocked and embarrassed by this photo. i’m deeply offended and will not be working with @hm anymore…”

woke up this morning shocked and embarrassed by this photo. i’m deeply offended and will not be working with @hm anymore… pic.twitter.com/P3023iYzAb

— The Weeknd (@theweeknd) January 8, 2018

The ad was used in company’s website in Britain and H&M apologized for it,according to the Toronto Star :

“The image, which was recently advertised on the Swedish clothing retail company’s website in Britain, ignited an uproar on social media, with critics saying it was tone-deaf and filled with racist undertones.”

The company is quoted,by Toronto Star, as saying “We understand that many people are upset about the image. We, who work at H&M, can only agree” in a statement it wrote to the The Washington Post. The statement further added “We are deeply sorry that the picture was taken, and we also regret the actual print. Therefore, we have not only removed the image from our channels, but also the garment from our product offering globally.

The ad caused outrage in social media and an anti-racist group in Montreal condemned H&M. The ad “reinforces racist stereotypes and constitutes a form of racial slur against black people,” said a spokesperson for the Centre for Research-Action on Race Relations as quoted by Montreal Gazette.



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