Swedish fashion retailer H&M has appointed a diversity leader in response to accusations of racism, after an image of a black child modelling a hoodie reading “coolest monkey in the jungle” appeared on its website.
H&M last week withdrew the hoodie, originally on sale for boys aged one to 10 for GBP7.99 (US$11), saying: “We have got this wrong and we are deeply sorry.” In contrast, the garment worn by a white child carried the words ‘Survival Expert.’
A statement added: “We agree with all the criticism that this has generated – we agree that, even if unintentional, passive or casual racism needs to be eradicated wherever it exists.
“We have taken down the image and we have removed the garment in question from sale. It will be recycled.
“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. We will now be doing everything we possibly can to prevent this from happening again in future.”
The international backlash also forced the Swedish chain to temporarily close some of its South African stores after they were vandalised by anti-racism protestors.
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By GlobalDataOn Tuesday (16 January) a post on H&M’s Facebook page stressed the group’s “commitment to addressing diversity and inclusiveness is genuine, therefore we have appointed a global leader, in this area, to drive our work forward.”
The Ahmed Kathrada Foundation, which fights against racialism, says this is not the first time that H&M has come under scrutiny regarding racial insensitivity – and could not understand “how such a racist advert could have passed by the company’s marketing team, and its management, without the racial undertones being picked up.”
It adds that in 2015 the retailer was criticised by a social media user for not featuring black models following the opening of their stores in South Africa. The company’s response via Twitter “implied that white models were featured to create a ‘positive image’.”
“These two incidents are perhaps indicative of the type of ignorance that continues to prevail around issues related to race, perhaps not only at H&M, but in the broader advertising sector and in society in general,” says the Foundation’s executive director, Neeshan Balton.
