Last week, an advertisement for a new clothing campaign posted by clothing giant H&M raised controversy after it was posted online.  

​

The Swedish brand’s backlash has been due in part to an ad posted which pictured a young black child donning a hoodie with the phrase “coolest monkey in the jungle.”

​

The ad provoked a lot of celebrity support as it navigated its way via social media.  As a result, The Weeknd declared an end to his partnership with a company.  A day later, G-Eazy followed suit.

​

The Weeknd tweeted on Monday, “woke up this morning shocked and embarrassed by this photo. I’m deeply offended and will not be working with @hm anymore…”

​

In an Instagram post online, G-Eazy addressed how he had been “genuinely excited” for an upcoming collaboration that he had been working on, set to launch within the upcoming months.  The artist went on to explain that after seeing the image, his “excitement over our global campaign quickly evaporated,” and declared that his partnership needed to end.

​

He continued, “Whether an oblivious oversight or not, it’s truly sad and disturbing that in 2018, something so racially and culturally insensitive could pass by the eyes of so man (stylist, photographer, creative and marketing teams) and be deemed acceptable.”

​

The Bay Area rapper included his public statement by saying that he can’t attach his name and brand to a company that would post the advertisement they did.  “I hope that this situation will serve as the wake up call that H&M and other companies need to get on track and become racially and culturally aware, as well as more diverse at every level.”

​

According to Rolling Stone, after the exposure rose to exponential heights, the company issued an apology and pulled the photo along with the product from the line.  H&M has since issued apologies saying that they keep their standards high and they “feel that we have made real progress over the years in playing our part in promoting diversity and inclusion.”

​

They stated that “we clearly haven’t come far enough.”  They said that they agree with the criticism that has generated in regard to the ad, and in blanket, said, “We have got this wrong and we agree that, even if unintentional, passive or casual racism needs to be eradicated wherever it exists.  We appreciate the support of those who have seen that our product and promotion were not intended to cause offense but, as a intended to cause offense but, as a global brand, we have a responsibility to be aware of and attuned to all racial and cultural sensitivities--and we have not lived up to this responsibility this time.”