Consumers create a petition against 'Annie' Target ads and demand an apology to Quevenzhané Wallis
Target recently launched a line of clothing inspired by the Annie remake that is currently in theatres. Many people, however, have called out the fact that while the look book for the line features diversity in the models the in-store ads only feature one white model in Annie's signature clothing. A Change.org petition was launched yesterday and has already picked up steam gathering over 4,000 signatures in under 24 hours.
Read the petition below -
Your recent Annie ads and in-store displays depicts a misleading depiction of the movie as it shows a Caucasion young lady opposed to the star of the film- Quvenzhané Wallis. Though the model is quite professional, she does not speak to the relevance of the movie or main character. When the original Annie came out, everything was about Aileen Quinn or a character/person that emulated her...why not now Target? If you can show it online, show it in ALL of your stores with multiple signage with different girls not one!
Although Annie is a fictitious character, there has been a major uproar from protesters stating that they would not support the movie due to the star being African American. Is [this] the reason why Target maliciously hid Quvenzhané Wallis or refused to use an African American girl to depict Annie in their ads?
Why do you feel that we are not enough to portray our beautiful images on your advertisements? If it is a multi-cultural issue, surely you could use her co-stars on some ads and Quvenzhané Wallis or another African American girl on others. Target, do you realize that African-American’s Buying Power Projected to be $1.1 Trillion By 2015 and as per Black Enterprise our group is the second largest racial minority in the country. Enough signatures will diminish your bottomline as it relate to sales.
Why does African American actors have to beg for respect, especially as it relates to advertising? When does it stop? Target it should stop now with this petition! Despite most beliefs, African Americans are capable of portraying more than drug dealers, pimps, and other bastardized portrayals of our culture. Gone are the days that African Americans sang or read lines from behind the scenes while our counterparts lip synced and was viewed as the stars. Quvenzhané Wallis earned that role and we demand your respect.
We demand that you immediately pull those misleading ads and give Quvenzhané Wallis her due respect as well as other little girls who aspire to be like her. Being African American is not ugly, it is not bad and we are sellable! These grossly misleading ads are adding to the divide and does not give young African American girls aspiring to become actors anything to be optimistic about. Or show more diversity within your stores and depict a variety of races as you did with your online ads. Everyone does not have access to internet- plus the younger fans may not be allowed to use internet.
With Quvenzhané Wallis attending your Target launch, don't you think that ALL Target stores should have the same signs to embrace all? In addition, that special "Red Dress" is synonymous to Annie- not a random model that does not look like her!
It would also be proper for you to apologize to Quvenzhané Wallis- that was utterly disrespectful.
Currently Target has not responded to the petition or to various media outlets asking for a comment.
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