Topic: H&M and the hoodie

[killer-heels]

H&M apologises over image of black child in 'monkey' hoodie

Retailer removes photograph of model in top bearing words ‘Coolest monkey in the jungle’ after condemnation

H&M has apologised for an advert showing a black child in a green hoodie bearing the words “Coolest monkey in the jungle”.

The ad sparked a backlash on social media, with some calling it inappropriate, disgusting and negligent.

The image of the model in the green hoodie has been removed from the H&M website; two similar designs modelled by white children remain.

One bears the words “Mangrove jungle” and “Official survival expert”; the other has outlines of various animals including giraffes and tigers.

The Labour MP Kate Osamor tweeted: “I was totally shocked, dismayed to say the very least, to find this online imagine. hm do you think this imagery is an appropriate representation of a young black boy?”

Alex Medina, who works in brand design, tweeted: “In the year 2018 there’s no way brands/art directors can be this negligent and lack awareness. If you look at other sweaters in same category, they have white kids. We have to do better.”

A person tweeting under the handle vulkaanrots said they would boycott the store: “So the black kid gets to wear the H&M sweater with ‘Coolest monkey in the jungle’ and the white kid with ‘Survival expert’. This is beyond disgusting.

“It’s a projection of your neocolonial thinking. You won’t see me anywhere near your shops these days hm.”

A spokeswoman for the retailer said: “This image has now been removed from all H&M channels and we apologise to anyone this may have offended.”

https://www.theguardian.com/fashion/2018/jan/08/h-and-m-apologises-over-image-of-black-child-in-monkey-hoodie

--------

Honest mistake, racist, or PC gone mad?

Either way, the Weeknd has dropped his affiliation with the brand and it will be negatively harmed by this.

[Skidder.]

H&M

Hitler & Mussolini, it would seem.

[Lush is the best medicine...]

The other two ones were modelled by white kids, just get one of them to model it!!!

[B0151?]

I mean obviously it seems like a mistake. They're a massive company who wouldn't actively look to fuck themselves over. It's crazy they never picked up on it but far from implausible, I'd imagine it's more likely a relatively young progressive person who'd be doing something like this than a racist old man?

You can talk about sensitivity and PC but we can't deny the impact and existence of racism. It is rightfully a sensitive issue for many and it's an existing racial insult,  footballers still face monkey chants and bananas being thrown at them across Europe.

For me, the sad thing is it's just another example of how cynical the world is, not sensitive. People truly want to believe the absolute worst in each-other and mistakes aren't possible. I suppose there is still so much racism about (look at Trump and politics across the world) that maybe it's understandable but it's pretty sad for me that if the person who did this got found out, they would be getting so much hatemail, for (imo) actually not having a racist thought in their mind that made this possible.

[Xabi Gerrard]

I don't think it'll effect sales too much, maybe just a small blip, if that.

For 'low end' clothing it's good quality, very good value for money and they tend to keep pace with fashion. People are getting poorer and people still want to look good - H&M is a place where people on a budget can still shop for clothes that look good. And it's not like their clothes have got 'H&M' emblazoned all over them either so there'll be no stigma attached to wearing their clothes as most people won't even know.

As for whether it was deliberate - I doubt it very much. Completely get why people are so outraged by it though.

[Brissyred]

I think the 'outraged' are the racists. For someone to do that they would not even be thinking about the kid being 'black' or 'white', they would be just a kid which is how it should be. Bet the wardrobe person didn't even think about it until it was pointed out by someone, that's not being racist, that's being completley the opposite.

[killer-heels]

I don't think it'll effect sales too much, maybe just a small blip, if that.

For 'low end' clothing it's good quality, very good value for money and they tend to keep pace with fashion. People are getting poorer and people still want to look good - H&M is a place where people on a budget can still shop for clothes that look good. And it's not like their clothes have got 'H&M' emblazoned all over them either so there'll be no stigma attached to wearing their clothes as most people won't even know.

As for whether it was deliberate - I doubt it very much. Completely get why people are so outraged by it though.

I think you underestimate how much power there is with consumers and how much retailers can be affected by negative reaction like this, especially the level of condemnation that has come forward by some very prominent celebrities.

[killer-heels]

I think the 'outraged' are the racists. For someone to do that they would not even be thinking about the kid being 'black' or 'white', they would be just a kid which is how it should be. Bet the wardrobe person didn't even think about it until it was pointed out by someone, that's not being racist, that's being completley the opposite.

So lots of black people found that offensive. They of course can be racist, but were they?

[killer-heels]

This was their grovelling apology: -

H&M is fully committed to playing its part in addressing society’s issues and problems, whether it’s diversity, working conditions or environmental protection – and many others. Our standards are high and we feel that we have made real progress over the years in playing our part in promoting diversity and inclusion. But we clearly haven’t come far enough.

We agree with all the criticism that this has generated – we have got this wrong and we agree that, even if unintentional, passive or casual racism needs to be eradicated wherever it exists. We appreciate the support of those who have seen that our product and promotion were not intended to cause offence but, as a global brand, we have a responsibility to be aware of and attuned to all racial and cultural sensitivities – and we have not lived up to this responsibility this time.
This incident is accidental in nature, but this doesn’t mean we don’t take it extremely seriously or understand the upset and discomfort it has caused.

We have taken down the image and we have removed the garment in question from sale. It will be recycled.
We will now be doing everything we possibly can to prevent this from happening again in future.
Racism and bias in any shape or form, conscious or unconscious, deliberate or accidental, are simply unacceptable and need to be eradicated from society. In this instance we have not been sensitive enough to this agenda.
Please accept our humble apologies.

[dalarr]

It's just baffling how a major company like H/M can make such a big mistake like that. No one saw that poster and thought it would cause an outrage? A couple of people haven't done their jobs properly. But I disagree with the thread starter. H/M is a strong brand. People will be outraged and post on Facebook and Twitter, and in two weeks  time something else will catch their attention (a dead celebrity or a royal wedding) and it's business as usual again.

[Skidder.]

I think the 'outraged' are the racists. For someone to do that they would not even be thinking about the kid being 'black' or 'white', they would be just a kid which is how it should be. Bet the wardrobe person didn't even think about it until it was pointed out by someone, that's not being racist, that's being completley the opposite.

That person is probably paid a lot of money - H&M are paid a lot of money and are a national retailer.

They should be ahead of shit like this, if they aren't, they're incompetent - a little bit of foresight should have been employed by their ad people; it weren't. That means either they are stupidly ignorant or they're grossly incompetent; either way, they should be called to question.

Opposite of racism...

[El Lobo]

It’s not even political correctness gone mad, it’s just so blatantly stupid.

[Xabi Gerrard]

I think you underestimate how much power there is with consumers and how much retailers can be affected by negative reaction like this, especially the level of condemnation that has come forward by some very prominent celebrities.

I think people's desire to look good outweighs this though. Like I say, people are finding it harder to make ends meet but still want to look good - H&M is a route to that.

If this escalates massively and people start protesting outside H&M shops it may deter people from entering. I doubt it'll get to that point though.

No one's going to stop going to H&M because The Weeknd is pissed off about it. Especially not in Brexit Britain...

[killer-heels]

No one's going to stop going to H&M because The Weeknd is pissed off about it. Especially not in Brexit Britain...

Yep, H&M should be fine with the over 50’s.

[jooneyisdagod]

Blatantly stupid mistake and it's right that they apologised. That's it. It's over. No need to muckrake anymore and make H&M out to be Nazis or anything along those lines or call for a boycott.

[killer-heels]

Blatantly stupid mistake and it's right that they apologised. That's it. It's over. No need to muckrake anymore and make H&M out to be Nazis or anything along those lines or call for a boycott.

There will be no boycott.

The interesting thing about this all is how a mistake (which it could have been or quite easily been a racist intention) can cause such huge damage.

Their apology talks about cultural sensitivities. The retailer i work for goes through huge numbers of checks to ensure things do not cause offence.

I wonder if they will hire an offence expert?

[Jake]

It's ridiculous. So only white children can be cheeky monkeys? It's all about the context. They had a cheeky looking lad in a top with the word monkey on it. A word often used to describe kids. He happened to be black.

Shame that h and m are being dragged through the mud and accused of being racist. A faux pas at best.

But people need something to pretend to be outraged so they can tweet about it and collect those little love hearts and retweets and validate their otherwise pointless existence before their bodies turn to mush.

[Xabi Gerrard]

It's ridiculous. So only white children can be cheeky monkeys? It's all about the context. They had a cheeky looking lad in a top with the word monkey on it. A word often used to describe kids. He happened to be black.

Shame that h and m are being dragged through the mud and accused of being racist. A faux pas at best.

But people need something to pretend to be outraged so they can tweet about it and collect those little love hearts and retweets and validate their otherwise pointless existence before their bodies turn to mush.

You're right about one thing - it's all about context. And you've failed to understand the context of why black people are so offended by seeing a black kid wearing a top with the word monkey on it being used to advertise a product.

I think it'll blow over and I think it must have been a genuine mistake, but I think black people are completely justified in being offended.

[Jake]

You're right about one thing - it's all about context. And you've failed to understand the context of why black people are so offended by seeing a black kid wearing a top with the word monkey on it being used to advertise a product.

I think it'll blow over and I think it must have been a genuine mistake, but I think black people are completely justified in being offended.

I'm not black, I can't speak for black people. I'd be a hell of a lot more sympathetic to a bme person who took offence.

However what I can't stand is your bog standard slacktivist looking for the next cause.

[Zeb]

Personally wouldn't have taken that meaning from it as my initial reaction. But then personally don't have to live with people using 'monkey' as a racial epithet against me. Perhaps reflective of not having sufficiently diverse eyes looking over ideas at H&M rather than anything else. Which is something they could considering altering quite easily.

[coolbyrne]

I think the 'outraged' are the racists. For someone to do that they would not even be thinking about the kid being 'black' or 'white', they would be just a kid which is how it should be. Bet the wardrobe person didn't even think about it until it was pointed out by someone, that's not being racist, that's being completley the opposite.

Problem is, these things never just go through one person before they make it to print. So what baffles me is, neither the wardrobe, makeup, lighting, photographer, nor anyone in the PR department who oversaw this ad stepped back and said, "Wait a minute. Is it just me or is there something off about this?"Or maybe they took away the fried chicken and watermelon and said, "Whew. Dodged a bullet there."

That being said, I don't think it was done on purpose, and I agree many people have way too much time on their hands to commit to recreational outrage. However, I fully understand why any black person was offended.

[SP]

I suspect that they shot most of the clothes with several models, and picked the best shots using varied models and everyone assumed that someone else had checked for offence. It is an innocent top, that is only offensive in certain contexts. It could easily have slipped into the gap between people’s responsibilities. It is a screw up, but it is one that no one would have risked their career to do deliberately.

[killer-heels]

I dont know if it was an error, intentional or what but one thing is for sure and that is H&M, like most in the fashion world, as well as the world of media and arts etc. wont have a particularly diverse workforce. Whether it be things like Vogue, where Naomi Campbell tweeted a picture of their employees made up completely of white people, or even the BBC where people of certaon backgrounds are preferred.

I am not one for forced diversity, but unless you have organisations that have different experiences from different backgrounds, you are bound to be shielded from things that others find offensive.

At the moment, if you are black, asian and of a specific ethnic background, your chances of being part of these organisations is pretty slim

[SP]

I dont know if it was an error, intentional or what but one thing is for sure and that is H&M, like most in the fashion world, as well as the world of media and arts etc. wont have a particularly diverse workforce. Whether it be things like Vogue, where Naomi Campbell tweeted a picture of their employees made up completely of white people, or even the BBC where people of certaon backgrounds are preferred.

I am not one for forced diversity, but unless you have organisations that have different experiences from different backgrounds, you are bound to be shielded from things that others find offensive.

Yeah they will. All their clothes are made by very diverse people. The use sweatshops all over the globe.

[killer-heels]

Yeah they will. All their clothes are made by very diverse people. The use sweatshops all over the globe.

Their smart enough not to directly employ them. They may have shares in ‘Child Beaters and Labourers Inc’ but they dont own the kids. Honest.

[Poet]

It's ridiculous. So only white children can be cheeky monkeys? It's all about the context. They had a cheeky looking lad in a top with the word monkey on it. A word often used to describe kids. He happened to be black.

Shame that h and m are being dragged through the mud and accused of being racist. A faux pas at best.

But people need something to pretend to be outraged so they can tweet about it and collect those little love hearts and retweets and validate their otherwise pointless existence before their bodies turn to mush.

I bet you're white.

[classycarra]

I dont know if it was an error, intentional or what but one thing is for sure and that is H&M, like most in the fashion world, as well as the world of media and arts etc. wont have a particularly diverse workforce. Whether it be things like Vogue, where Naomi Campbell tweeted a picture of their employees made up completely of white people, or even the BBC where people of certaon backgrounds are preferred.

I am not one for forced diversity, but unless you have organisations that have different experiences from different backgrounds, you are bound to be shielded from things that others find offensive.

At the moment, if you are black, asian and of a specific ethnic background, your chances of being part of these organisations is pretty slim

Not sure why you've added the BBC in there, why you trying to bash them? What exactly do you mean about certain backgrounds? Are you saying they prefer certain races/ethnicities to work for them?

[killer-heels]

Not sure why you've added the BBC in there, why you trying to bash them? What exactly do you mean about certain backgrounds? Are you saying they prefer certain races/ethnicities to work for them?

They tend to prefer people of certain backgrounds, certainly in terms of education, which gets them a certain type of person. They also have people who get family into the organisation which again extends that type.

[classycarra]

They tend to prefer people of certain backgrounds, certainly in terms of education, which gets them a certain type of person. They also have people who get family into the organisation which again extends that type.

Quite sweeping generalisations for such a huge corporation. Statistics in their annual show that it's odd for you to cite them into a discussion about a lack of diversity. Personal motivation?

[deFacto please, you bastards]

It's ridiculous. So only white children can be cheeky monkeys? It's all about the context. They had a cheeky looking lad in a top with the word monkey on it. A word often used to describe kids. He happened to be black.

Shame that h and m are being dragged through the mud and accused of being racist. A faux pas at best.

But people need something to pretend to be outraged so they can tweet about it and collect those little love hearts and retweets and validate their otherwise pointless existence before their bodies turn to mush.

Says a white male.

Of course you don't understand.

If the shoe was on the other foot, you'd feel quite differently.

And this has sweet fck all to do with collection love hearts and retweets. Black men and women should be offended by this.

There is no excuses to making a mistake like this.

[deFacto please, you bastards]

I don't think it'll effect sales too much, maybe just a small blip, if that.

For 'low end' clothing it's good quality, very good value for money and they tend to keep pace with fashion. People are getting poorer and people still want to look good - H&M is a place where people on a budget can still shop for clothes that look good. And it's not like their clothes have got 'H&M' emblazoned all over them either so there'll be no stigma attached to wearing their clothes as most people won't even know.

As for whether it was deliberate - I doubt it very much. Completely get why people are so outraged by it though.

I certainly won't be buying anything from them again.

[killer-heels]

Quite sweeping generalisations for such a huge corporation. Statistics in their annual show that it's odd for you to cite them into a discussion about a lack of diversity. Personal motivation?

I like the BBC but diversity has always been a problem there. They have done ok to try to get away from their middle class preference but they have done that thanks to increasing their more tailored content like One Extra or Asian Network.

Go into their hq and they are still, as Greg Dyke called them, hideously white.

[killer-heels]

I certainly won't be buying anything from them again.

The whole board of H&M is white and working myself for a retailer i would put an educated guess that their advertising team is mainly white. They would have probably not made a link which again highlights how a lack of diversity makes organisations a bit tone deaf.

They should have focus grouped it, as silly as focus grouping for hoodies sounds.

That said, should a mistake like this lead to such aggro and brand damage? People here may scoff at it, but fashion sales do follow with celebrity and cultural trends and popularity. Having high profile stars drop affiliations is not good, especially after a not so good financial and sales performance last year.

[jooneyisdagod]

Quite sweeping generalisations for such a huge corporation. Statistics in their annual show that it's odd for you to cite them into a discussion about a lack of diversity. Personal motivation?

You would need to look into different sections of the operation to see whether or not there are trends with respect to diversity. I'm not a fan of enforced diversity at all but within large organisations, often certain roles are far less diverse than others. And typically, diversity reduces further up the ranks one looks.

[jooneyisdagod]

And this has sweet fck all to do with collection love hearts and retweets. Black men and women should be offended by this.

But why? I mean, I get why individual black people might be offended by this but why "should" they be offended? Surely it must be up to individuals to decide whether or not they're offended by that.

[Geppvindh's]

Black face, things to do with a monkey, watermelon are all stereotypes that are used with only racist references against black people. While "monkeying around" is a term that people would associate commonly with children, sticking that reference to a black child puts things in murky territory. This is precisely why it would continue to be an issue as long as monkey chants, banana throwing and other primate racist stereotypes continue to be used against black people.

There is a reason why large companies like H&M have PR, diversity outreach and other kinds of barricades from things like this getting out. That this managed to find a way out in the open despite all these provisions is where the company has failed and has been pushed to apologize. I don't believe this was deliberate for that very reason, but a stupid and utterly avoidable PR disaster.

[jason67]

It's just baffling how a major company like H/M can make such a big mistake like that. No one saw that poster and thought it would cause an outrage? A couple of people haven't done their jobs properly. But I disagree with the thread starter. H/M is a strong brand. People will be outraged and post on Facebook and Twitter, and in two weeks  time something else will catch their attention (a dead celebrity or a royal wedding) and it's business as usual again.

I think you're being very generous about the public there mate, I'd give it 2 days.

[losCHUNK]

It's an innocent mistake and one that can be forgiven imo.

H&M didn't mean to offend, it was an advert to sell clothes, I can see why people would be offended initially but can't we just accept their apology and move on ?

To people saying it's not offensive, you know exactly what you thought when you seen the advert.  It would be nice if society could move beyond the racial connection but if it were accepted it would be a racial mockery.  Quite ironically n all, the people who worked on this ad obviously disassociated the racial connection.

[Jake]

I bet you're white.

Says a white male.

Of course you don't understand.

If the shoe was on the other foot, you'd feel quite differently.

And this has sweet fck all to do with collection love hearts and retweets. Black men and women should be offended by this.

There is no excuses to making a mistake like this.

Yep. Xabi Gerrard above was polite in saying that he thought I'd missed the context, but you two using my skin colour as a reason for my opinion being invalid isn't the brightest move. At least defacto offered a retort.

I'm not going to tell black people what they should be offended by. I stand by my opinion that the majority of the outraged will be slacktivists looking for the next bandwagon.

Theres no prejudice or hate here. It's an unfortunate coincidence and now it's been removed that should be that.

[Poet]

Yep. Xabi Gerrard above was polite in saying that he thought I'd missed the context, but you two using my skin colour as a reason for my opinion being invalid isn't the brightest move. At least defacto offered a retort.

I'm not going to tell black people what they should be offended by. I stand by my opinion that the majority of the outraged will be slacktivists looking for the next bandwagon.

Theres no prejudice or hate here. It's an unfortunate coincidence and now it's been removed that should be that.

As one white man to another, your opinion is wholly invalid. Why?  Because you have never been called a monkey due to the colour of your skin. Slacktivists? Is that what you call people who wish to live in a world where racism does not fuel so much hate and disharmony? H&M could have easily prevented this shit storm, they deserve the criticism.