ACTION ALERT: American Apparel is selling out girls (we’re not buying)!
February 11, 2010
by Hardy Girls Healthy Women
|Join our friends at Hardy Girls Healthy Women as they speak out against the sexualization of girls. Take action and sign their petition. The opinions expressed herein are those of the author, and not necessarily those of The New Agenda.
American Apparel has such a history of sexist ad campaigns that we’ve often wondered if their marketing team is made up of teenage boys lacking creativity and common sense. 
But their latest endeavor takes the cake. American Apparel is looking for the best bottom in the world to be the “face” of their new ad campaign. They’re inviting girls to upload pictures of their butts to the website (wearing AA underwear or body suits, of course) and then asking people to judge the submissions with a score of 1-5 and the option to add snarky comments. It’s low budget and lowbrow. For girls, however, it’s high stakes.
Here’s their invitation: “Confident about the junk in your trunk? Show us your assets! Post a photo of your booty’s best side for judgment. We’re looking for a brand new bum (the best in the world!) to be the new “face” for our always expanding intimates and briefs lines. The winners will be flown to LA, photographed and featured online. Send in a close-up photo of your backside wearing American Apparel panties, bodysuits or briefs for consideration and vote for your personal favorites.”
Geez, American Apparel, try listening to girls instead of objectifying them. As Thalia, age 19, says, “You don’t need to exploit us to benefit your company. Someone that is a CEO should have more common sense, don’t you think?”
We do.
So, here’s our reply – grow up and get someone on your marketing team who’s got some brain cells and some principles. Sign our letter to AA’s CEO and Corporate Relations people to add your name to the protest.
Hardy Girls Healthy Women (HGHW) is a nonprofit organization dedicated to the health and well being of girls and women. Our vision is that all girls and women experience equality, independence, and safety in their everyday lives. To that end, our mission is to create opportunities, develop programs, and provide services that empower them. Since day one, Hardy Girls programming, resources and services have been powered by the latest research in girls’ development.
This is one of the most unbelievable exploitations of young woman I’ve seen in the advertising world. Glad I haven’t had my coffee yet. I would have choked on it.
This is more of a porn site than a clothing site!
Thanks for the heads up HGHW.
We’ll all sign your petition. This is disgusting!
Thanks New Agenda for collaborating with us! We are appalled by American Apparel but are encouraged to see the overwhelming support of our petition. AA stores are located all over the world and are the largest clothing manufacturers in the country, making their campaign for the “best bottom” a far-reaching exploitation of women.
We appreciate each and every signature. Keep them coming!
Disgusting. I hope it doesn’t irritate some women or girls to the point where they put etching paste slogans all over American Apparels store windows.
just signed. will send to all my friends. so we know where not to buy.
I was just thinking what a interesting web site that Hardy girls health women site is but I had never heard of it before today. I wish there was some way for woman positive places to put up a main page sort of like a newspaper front page. Sort of a hub for pro woman orgs. Actually I think there is already a place called porn hub so it would be nice if we could counter-act that with our own hub. Personally I think it could include positive expressions of female sexuality, because if we pro woman types don’t talk to our girls about their sexuality we can be sure we are the only ones who are not talking to them about it.
Yes, very cool organization, Hardy Girls Healthy Women. I’m bookmarking it.
I absolutely agree that this ad campaign is disgusting and degrading toward young women. But at the same time I completely support Sarah Palin’s belief in free and open markets. How to reconcile these conflicting beliefs keeps me up wake-less for nights. I want to believe in both–any suggestions?
Brian, I wonder how many sleep less nights you’ll have before you. it takes to think about the tools of patriarchy, if you want to figure out why there is a market for such disgusting and revolting underwear.
What an appalling ad. Thanks for the heads up on this. I signed the petition, hope many more do.
I wonder how many underage girls will enter this contest. I hope they get nailed for child pornography.
Brian: The way to let the free market take effect is for women to stop buying the product and the company will disappear. Web sites like this can help with that because the age group who tends to read this site has control of family budgets not just their own money, they might not have been aware of this stunt, but now they are and they can be sure their daughters shop somewhere else. Also women are keepers of phone/Email lists, I have the mom phone list for two swim teams, three water polo orgs, two current soccer leagues, PTA and on and on. You don’t have to send out a rant, a simple “can you believe this, please pass this on” will do nicely and the effect will be an exponential spread of the anti American Apparel message. Of course this is complicated by the fact that most people who run businesses can’t seem to fathom the concept of leaving money on the table. They will just look at the chatter they got, call the women who are talking fugly while failing to perceive their economic power and stay the sexist course.
I think we should put undies (dirty ones at that) on very large dirty men (who will of course volunteer and laugh) and take some good booty photos….and send them in. Perhaps we should FAX them in–and in case they get lost we should fax them by the 1000′s….
Let the BOOTY WARS BEGIN!!!
And plllllleeeeezzzeee women would you please keep you flippin’ pants on and stop degrading yourselves!!
[...] Deliberately Exploitive Pigs Posted on February 17, 2010 by Uppity Woman Stop over to Amy Siskind’s place to read her piece about these despicable exploitive people. And while you are there, sign the [...]
I put a post up this morning, sending my members to the petition.
I hope they get caught with under-age girls on that site because you can bet some 14 year old will think it’s cool.
I hope one of their own daughters, girlfriends and wives drop some pics on them for the whole staff to see, see how well they like that.
This is seriously disquesting stuff. I am adding this company to my boycott list. I hope the police are watching this. To easy for underage girls to get involved and I am sure these sleazy idiots will not bother to check IDS.
I am going to write up an Action Alert for Hillarysworld.
[...] You: Uppity Women and The New Agenda for bringing attention to [...]
[...] wrote about this horrid contest here after I saw Amy Siskind’s piece on it. From Siskind’s post: American Apparel has such a history of sexist ad campaigns that [...]
I’m in agreement that women shouldn’t be exploited. However, I do think that an adult’s freedom of choice should be factored into the discussion. People have the right to sell or donate their image in any way they see fit. The corporation that buys that image is setting a bad example for developing minds but I expect parents to influence the outcome of their future decisions, not a soulss corporation. Most people here want to treat the symptom without considering that the women that participate in this are in complete control of whether they send photos or not. You all are right to be disgusted, but blame the women that are willing to submit their asses for money. After all, their not being forced by anybody.
Personal responsibility and free will is an important part of being a free human. Members of society would do well to start looking inward before projecting blame on others, no matter how twisted the others may be. If more parents taught their children self respect and personal responsibility, I don’t believe we’d be discussing this.
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