H&M, the world’s second-largest clothing group, came under fire on social media for using a black boy to advertise a sweatshirt that said: “coolest monkey in the jungle.”
The ad was widely criticized for being racist, indicating that the company reps should have known that describing a black person as “monkey” is a known racial slur.
Canadian pop star “the Weeknd”, who collaborated with H&M on two collections in 2017, said in a tweet that he’s distancing himself from H&M after the news broke on social media.
The Toronto native used strong words like “shocked and embarrassed” and “deeply offended” making it clear that he will no longer work with the clothing brand.
H&M, well known for its fast-fashion clothing for men, women, teenagers, and children, said that the “image had now been removed from all H&M channels and that they sincerely apologize to anyone this may have offended.”