I saw ‘Liam Mango’ as a 5-year-old male modeling for H&M, a normal kid doing what any kid does whilst put in his shoes.
Suddenly I was confronted by the clothing enterprises' choice in clothing. H&M released a photograph of Liam with their newly released hoodie sweatshirt, embellishing the words ‘coolest monkey in the jungle’ in white capital letters. Due to the African descent of the young model along with the term ‘monkey’ being considered a derogatory stereotype of people with African background, it all seemed like an issue to me.
As soon as I saw this misleading advertisement, I was instantly interested, thinking to myself over and over, how could someone let this get out into the world without any chain reaction.
What was strange to me was when a claim from the corporation stated they ‘value diversity in people and ideas, as much as in personal style’. Whilst H&M’s initial envisionment for this product may not have been to show hate or racism, a lack of awareness was evident. The clear link between racism and the slogan forged a strong negative mindset among the community.
The denotation of the writing itself ‘coolest monkey in the jungle for me, showed this sense of innocence and youth, making me think about a joyful monkey within the trees as a key relation to a child swinging on the swing set or playing in their backyard. Some onlookers of this text, including Liam Mango’s mother, briefly stood with h&m, “I wouldn't see such a connection to anything other than my son modeling a shirt”. Mr. Mango still had some agreement with the world's claims when she assessed the racial connotations of the commercial displayed, she stated “you look back and wonder if you had noticed it, what would be my initial response to it”.
As I cannot fully understand the extent of the racism shown towards the black community, I do have an acceptance of what's signified in the minds of the South African Economic Freedom Fighters, who marched through malls destroying some of H&M's store's equity. I haven't personally faced the ideology of these racial comments in my life so how can I be one to judge the effects of this comment on their culture.
As this aired globally, H&M lost a lot of sponsors within this period, including one of my favorite artists ‘The Weekend’ who had this to say responding towards the situation.
The Apology
When looking into the ‘Situational Crisis Communication study by Timothy Coombs, I found it intriguing how it establishes whether H&M embraced the correct approach towards the aftermath of this issue. The report indicates that ‘15% of consumers viewed H&M and its crisis In a positive light’ and 26% in a negative light. In conclusion, the analysis revealed an increased level of appeal of ethics and emotion on the awareness rather than a more logical and rational argument.
I have had experiences of racism with a few of my friends and this has pushed me to come to an agreement within the negative connotation of this decision by H&M, personally, I feel the racism and derogatory comments that all people with any background face every day does not represent who they are.
References
cnbc.com. 2021. H&M slammed as racist for ‘monkey in the jungle’ hoodie. [online] Available at: <https://www.cnbc.com/2018/01/08/hm-slammed-for-racist-monkey-in-the-jungle-hoodie.html> [Accessed 1 April 2021].
Media, W., 2021. Case Study: H&M’s Coolest Monkey in the Jungle. [online] Pagecentertraining.psu.edu. Available at: <https://www.pagecentertraining.psu.edu/public-relations-ethics/introduction-to-diversity-and-public-relations/lesson-2-how-to-reach-diverse-stakeholders/reaching-diverse-stakeholders-externally/> [Accessed 1 April 2021].
Projekter.aau.dk. 2021. H&M and The Coolest Monkey in the Jungle: A case study of H&M's online Crisis Communication - Project Library, Aalborg University. [online] Available at: <https://projekter.aau.dk/projekter/en/studentthesis/hm-and-the-coolest-monkey-in-the-jungle-a-case-study-of-hms-online-crisis-communication(7d58a2b2-1e23-41d2-9dde-391cdd7476f3).html> [Accessed 1 April 2021].
SBS News. 2021. 'Coolest monkey in the jungle': H&M in hot water after 'distasteful' hoodie ad. [online] Available at: <https://www.sbs.com.au/news/coolest-monkey-in-the-jungle-h-m-in-hot-water-after-distasteful-hoodie-ad> [Accessed 1 April 2021].
Strategy), H., 2021. GRIN - H&M Scandal. "Coolest Monkey in the Jungle" advertisement (Bad Strategy). [online] Grin.com. Available at: <https://www.grin.com/document/453229> [Accessed 1 April 2021].
Velez, N., 2021. H&M Poorly Handles 2017 Crisis. [online] Medium. Available at: <https://medium.com/@nalavelez/h-m-poorly-handles-2017-crisis-3d566679c27b> [Accessed 1 April 2021].
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