International clothing retailer H&M has pulled one of its Australian advertisements and apologised after social media users complained that it “sexualized children.”
Confirming it had removed the ad, the Swedish company said it was “deeply sorry for the offence” it had caused and said it was “looking into how we present campaigns going forward.”
Social media users took screenshots of the ad before it was removed, with people calling it “creepy” and “disturbing” and recalling their own experiences of “being ogled” while still at school.
It featured two primary-aged schoolgirls dressed in matching white shirts, dark grey pinafores, and pink rucksacks on board what appears to be a pink school bus, with the slogan “Make those heads turn in H&M’s Back to School fashion.”
Australian writer Melinda Tankard Reist was among those who opposed the ad.
“What is your intention with this sponsored Facebook ad?” she posted on X, formerly known as Twitter. “Little schoolgirls generally don’t want to ’turn heads’. The large numbers I engage with in schools want to be left alone to learn and have fun and not draw unwanted attention to their appearance.
“Why would you want to fuel the idea that little girls should draw attention to their looks, bodies and ‘style’? Perhaps have a word to your marketing team and come up with something that doesn’t draw attention to pre-pubescent girls already struggling to thrive in a culture that values ‘lookism’ as an aspirational goal?” she wrote.
‘No Mistake’
British political commentator Adam Brooks posted an image of the ad on X, writing, “This was no mistake, this campaign would have had to go through many people to be signed off, why would people turn heads for kids?? … sick.”However, not everyone on social media agreed. One user wrote, “Hmm debatable because I'd state anyone looking at this as sexual may have an issue? Adverts have been round a long time and always had kids on posters, they just look like they are modelling school uniform like they’ve seen for years?”
Another responded, “I must need to adjust my offence-ometer, this appears completely harmless to me.”
Fashion brands often face criticism over ads that are seen as sexualising children. Balenciaga released two campaigns in November 2022 featuring children carrying handbags that looked like teddy bears appearing to be dressed in bondage gear, as well as a printout of a Supreme Court decision that upheld laws against child pornography.
In December last year, a Zara campaign went viral after users likened the use of mannequins missing limbs and wrapped in white cloth to images of bombing victims in Gaza. Zara took down the ad and said it regretted the “misunderstanding” after calls to #BoycottZara spread across social media platforms.
