Zara Controversy: Zara’s latest advertisement campaign featuring model Kristen McMenamy sparks public outrage due to its similarities with the Gaza Genocide.
Zara, a Spanish retail clothing giant, made headlines recently when its most recent advertising campaign was met with criticism. Many people claimed on the internet that the campaign’s pictures looked like pictures of bodies in white shrouds in Gaza.
Internet users claimed that the fast-fashion store made fun of the damage brought about by the Israel-Hamas conflict. The business, however, has issued an apology and maintains that the promotion was started more than a month earlier. Read in detail to learn the whole story.
Behind the Story of Controversy:
Mannequins lacking limbs and statues wrapped in white sheets were the focus of Zara’s “The Jacket” advertising campaign, which was accessible from the company’s mobile application and online landing page. Additionally, the campaign featured model Kristen McMenamy posing amidst what appeared to be debris. The model was pictured inside a wooden box in other photos.
Users were drawn to the shattered plater board, cracked stones, and damaged statues despite the campaign’s intention to sell six new jackets. Others said that the advertisement campaign featuring the plywood boards looked similar to pictures of Israel’s attack on the people living in Gaza.
The Jacket was part of the brand’s Atelier series, which it describes as a limited edition collection from the house that celebrates the brand’s commitment to craftsmanship and passion for artistic expression. But whatever happened after that users were shocked and started calling for a “Boycott Zara”.
Netizens’ Reaction:
Netizens pointed out the startling similarities between the mannequins and the shrouded bodies of victims of Israel’s indiscriminate war on Gaza, which has reportedly killed over 18,000 people so far, thousands of them women and children. The broken white concrete was compared to the destroyed buildings in Gaza.
A user of X (formerly known as Twitter) also noticed that the powdered white substance used in the photos’ background mimics Israel’s use of white phosphorus in Gaza, and one of the cracked plasterboards in the images’ background is shaped like a map of Palestine.
Zara’s Reaction and Clarification:
Fashion label Zara expressed their sorry for the “misunderstanding” caused by a campaign of advertisements using white-wrapped statues that led to boycott calls from some pro-Palestinian organisations. They also stated that they had removed the images after people started leaving lots of complaints about the campaign on the company’s Instagram account.
The brand further stated in its clarification that they were planned in July and clicked in September before the war conflict erupted in October. It was meant to show sculptures that are incomplete and unfinished in a sculptor’s studio. The brand further enhanced the way advertisements are featured. Unfortunately, some customers felt displeased by these images, which have now been pulled out, and saw in them something far from what was intended when they were made.
The images that were used in the campaign have only the single objective of showcasing clothes made with a craft in an artistic context. Brand concludes their clarification by stating that they regret the misunderstandings, and they reaffirm their deep respect for everyone.
Zara’s Instagram page erased six posts that featured the campaign. According to the parent firm of Zara, all sites have removed the images. Zara had earlier removed the “Atelier” photo shoot from the home pages of its apps and website.
