Kim Kardashian called the Balenciaga holiday ad campaign disgusting and outrageous
Kim Kardashian, an ambassador for Balenciaga, is speaking out following the uproar surrounding the high-end fashion house’s most recent holiday advertising campaign. On Sunday, Kardashian posted a statement on her Instagram Story about the Balenciaga advertising campaign, which received criticism for using young models and making references to child pedophilia. The reality television star turned beauty tycoon claimed that the “disturbing pictures” of the campaign left her “shaken.” Kardashian continued by saying that she is currently reassessing her working connection with Balenciaga.
“I have been quiet for the past few days, not because I haven’t been disgusted and outraged by the recent Balenciaga campaigns, but because I wanted an opportunity to speak to their team to understand for myself how this could have happened,” Kardashian wrote. “The safety of children must be held in the highest regard, and any attempts to normalize child abuse of any kind should have no place in our society period.”
She continued: “I appreciate Balenciaga’s removal of the campaigns and apology.” “In speaking with them, I believe they understand the seriousness of the issue and will take the necessary measures to ensure this never happens again.”
According to the New York Post, Cosmopolitan UK, and Fox News, Balenciaga got into trouble when its holiday ad angered social media users and campaigners. The brand’s “plush bear bags,” stuffed animals dressed in bondage attire, were seen on child models in one ad from the campaign, while court documents referencing Supreme Court rulings on child pornography were shown in another ad for its “Hourglass” handbag.
On their Instagram story on Tuesday, Balenciaga apologized for the uproar.
“We sincerely apologize for any offense our holiday campaign may have caused,” the company wrote. “Our plush bear bags should not have been featured with children in this campaign… We strongly condemn the abuse of children in any form. “We stand for children’s safety and well-being.”
The fashion business stated it is seeking legal action against “the parties responsible for designing the set and inserting unauthorized items” in relation to the use of court records in its campaign. According to The Post, Balenciaga sued set designer Nicholas Des Jardins and production company North Six, Inc. on Friday for using legal documents in the campaign.
Monday, the fashion brand put out another statement on Instagram, saying that it was against child abuse and didn’t want to “include it in our story.”
“The two separate ad campaigns in question reflect a series of grievous errors for which Balenciaga takes responsibility,” it added.
According to the statement, one of these mistakes was showing kids holding teddy bear bags and “dressed in what some have dubbed BDSM-inspired costumes.”
These bears “should not have been featured with children,” and the error “was a wrong choice by Balenciaga, combined with our failure in assessing and validating images.”
“The responsibility for this lies with Balenciaga alone,” the fashion house continued.
The depiction of an office setting with copies of court documents from a 2008 Supreme Court judgment that ruled promoting child pornography is criminal and not a protected form of free expression was the second inaccuracy, the statement claimed. Third parties allegedly supplied these documents and affirmed in writing that they were “false office documents,” according to Balenciaga. The documents were actually “genuine legal papers, probably from the filming of a television play,” according to the statement.
The statement continued, “We take full ownership for our lack of monitoring and control of the background materials, and we could have done things better,” stressing that it was because of these files that Balenciaga decided to bring its $25 million lawsuit. The business stated that, in addition to conducting internal and external investigations, it intends to change the way it operates, “strengthen the structures” surrounding its creative processes, and “lay the groundwork” with groups devoted to preventing child abuse.