Nivea – the Skincare and beauty products company – came under fire this week after they used a tasteless ad campaign depicting a clean-cut black male holding the decapitated head of a man with an afro to promote a hair care product for African American men. The ad for Nivea for Men appeared in the September issue of Esquire magazine with the title “Look Like You Give a Damn. Re-civilize Yourself.”
Nivea has apologised for the advertisement following reactions from social networking sites and Twitter as people voiced their displeasure over the ad. There is a White-man version, but there’s no talk of re-civilising him.
Nivea’s parent company, Beiersdorf AG, said in a statement, “We are deeply sorry to anyone who may take offence to this specific local advertisement. After realising that this ad is misleading, it was immediately withdrawn.”
The statement went on to say that “Diversity and equal opportunity are crucial values of Nivea: The brand represents diversity, tolerance, and equal opportunity. We value difference. Direct or indirect discrimination must be ruled out in all decisions by, and in all areas of our activities. This applies regardless of gender, age, race, skin color, religion, ideology, sexual orientation, or disability. Nor should cultural, ethnic, or national origin, and political or philosophical conviction be of any significance.”
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