Here we go again. Another major corporation offending... well... just about everyone. Everyone that is except maybe pedophiles and teenage boys. With a highly sexualized underwear ad featuring a peek up a young girl's skirt, Calvin Klein has taken their edgy, often offensive ads in the past to new heights... or depending on your perspective new depths!
The recent overtly sexist billboard that appeared in New York, featuring a young girl sitting provocatively on a couch with the caption "I 'flash' in #mycalvins", offended hundreds of women who swore never to buy CK underwear again. So what do you do if you are a multi-gazillion dollar International brand trying to win back your customer base? Why you pose a nubile teeny with her legs spread and snap a crotch-shot with your GoPro... or whatever. The above ad which is captioned as well "I 'flash' in #mycalvins" was taken without a flash... and for many sitting in jail for taking similar pictures, maybe taken without the knowledge of the young lady depicted! Or not.
Here are a few of the outraged responses traveling the social medai circuit:
#WednesdayWisdom- @CalvinKlein , exactly when did paedophiles become your target audience? This is so offensive to victims of molestation. — Kingsley (@RemyKJamison) May 11, 2016
@CalvinKlein That upskirt photo is absolutely disgusting & degrading to women. How on earth can u think that this is ok? cc:@EverydaySexism — Sissel Bergh (@_sibergh_) May 11, 2016
@CalvinKlein http://Shame.Giving every pedophile a peek up a 12 year-olds skirt.Just wrong. — XAS @momdukes11307:35 AM - 11 May 2016
We could go on but why bother? You can't miss this stuff and pretty soon it will be everywhere. Calvin Klein's defenders say "No one knows how to sell underwear and fragrances and clothing by promoting scandalous sex better than Calvin Klein." Well true... but we know a guy who got arrested in a Walmart bathroom for taking the exact same shot. So should we let him out... or lock Calvin up, Discuss among yourselves.
Look for Calvin Klein's mea culpa in the next few days. But don't count on the ad geniuses re-styling their next campaign around turtlenecks. When you are in the underwear business you only stand out when you show the merchandise. And to paraphrase Miss Clairol, Calvin Klein's warped philosophy is clearly: "The closer you get, the better it looks."