A high-end luxury fashion brand is under fire for its latest ad campaign that featured children in highly sexualized scenes.
Balenciaga, a Spanish fashion house founded in 1919, drew strong condemnation for its depiction of two extremely young girls in a recent print ad campaign for its Spring/Summer 2023 collection. Both children are seen clad in Balenciaga apparel clutching teddy bears in recognizable BDSM gear.
BDSM — short for bondage, domination, and sadomasochism — refers to a broad-ranging set of sexual fetishes that typically feature some element of physical restraint, control, submission, and pain.
Also worth highlighting is the surroundings in which these two children were placed. One young girl grips her teddy bear while standing atop a couch in what appears to be a playroom.
On a coffee table in front of her are numerous wine glasses, a flask, and a beer stein. Another teddy bear in BDSM gear sits on an end table to her right.
The other photo featuring a young girl is set in a bedroom. The child stands atop a bed featuring an array of chains and straps, including a leash with a collar and a flask. Similarly, she grips a teddy bear in BDSM gear while another is placed to her right.
In a separate photo, Balenciaga also featured one of its handbags atop a cluttered desk. Some of the documents in the photo contained excerpts from a 2008 United States Supreme Court decision which held that a broad federal statute prohibiting the offering or requesting of child pornography was not unconstitutional.
Outrage against the ads was swift.
“Here you have a major international retail brand promoting kiddie porn and sex with children and not promoting it subtly, but right out in the open,” remarked Tucker Carlson.
“No healthy society can tolerate that, and in fact, none ever have tolerated it. There’s never been a time in American history where pedophilia was considered anything other than the worst thing, the most horrifying crime imaginable,” Carlson concluded.
Balenciaga quickly issued a public statement and immediately terminated the ad campaign.
“We sincerely apologize for any offense our holiday campaign may have caused,” the fashion brand posted on Instagram. “Our plush bear bags should not have been featured with children in this campaign. We have immediately removed the campaign from all platforms.”
In an Instagram post, the company also apologized “for displaying unsettling documents in our campaign” and pointed fingers at the ad’s photographer for the uproar surrounding the Supreme Court case documents.
Balenciaga went further to claim it is “taking legal action against the parties responsible for creating the set and including unapproved items for our Spring 23 campaign photoshoot.”
However, the campaign’s photographer, Gabriele Galimberti, has pushed back against the notion that he is to blame.
“I am not in a position to comment [on] Balenciaga’s choices, but I must stress that I was not entitled in whatsoever manner to neither chose (sic) the products, nor the models, nor the combination of the same,” Galimberti remarked.
Balenciaga has since made good on its promise to pursue legal action, suing production company North Six Inc. and set designer Nicholas Des Jardins and his company for $25 million in damages “to seek redress for extensive damages defendants caused in connection with an advertising campaign Balenciaga hired them to produce.”
Neither North Six nor Des Jardins has responded to a request for comment on the suit.
“Oopsie”, then blame the photographer? Sorry, not that stupid. Are twisted, sexual fetishes something to be brazenly advertised and proud of now? Heaven help us all, especially the children surrounded by adults with no better morals and judgment than to create this trash campaign.
BALONEY!! The only one to blame here is the designer. To even suggest otherwise is ludicrous.
No, I don’t care about a lawsuit. This company has been in business since 1919. When in the past have they just allowed ads to be released without senior executives going over prior to release. I’m sorry this does not sit well with me. This is what’s been going on in the background, but they felt bold enough to put it in the ad thinking that it wasn’t going to be an issue. When you have a president and his son that are both pedophiles that get away with kind of sick crap others will think they can do it too. The parents should also be put in jail.
Oh, no. You believe in QAnon. Hahahaha!
Where in your mind could you conjure up such an idiotic thought, much less express it?
Because she believes that there is a secret cabal of pedophilia running DC. Clearly you believe nonsense you read online as well.
I have some waterfront property I’d like to sell you. Hit me up!
There you go again. Not one word mentioned from Rachelle about DC or any “secret cabal”. You need to go see Nurse Rached for the dose you missed.
just a troll…ignore and move on
Where the heck are we headed? This is sick! Our young should be, must be protected from this exploitation!
How about people get angry over kids being trafficked, as opposed to kids being featured in an art house fashion ad holding a teddy bear with faux studs and leather?
Was the ad done in poor taste? Yep. Are there real problems with kids being abused? Yep. Let’s focus on those.
>QAnon deflection failed so Imma try deflecting off plain sight elitist culture tip of the spear degeneracy onto generalized sex trafficking.
You must be exhausted.
Popular designer for Meliana Trump.
Personally, not a big deal and it is clever.
Only the raging puritans protest.
Only the sick ones defend.
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What is amazing this gets published, when many comments which are not half as bad are deleted by whom? Someone who monitors the comments that individuals and bots submit in the post comments on a website . . . what do you think?
Bull crap!!! Don’t tell me that Balenciaga did not have the final say in that or any of it’s advertising campaigns!! They ALWAYS have the final go ahead or refusal!!! So suing for $25 million is after the fact pure BULL CRAP!!!
You should listen to people when they tell you who they are.
Obviously they’re deflecting, but they had to approve the ads in the first place..so I don’t buy it, I never heard of the company until a few weeks ago when some kids killed another kid for shoes from this company. Guess it’s not just nikes….
Until a group of people come in and shut them down and make an example of this company promoting child porn, Before someone arrests the parents for letting their child be subjected to all this filth, Then this new trend will continue as company’s push the boundaries of what is acceptable in our society and what is not. Their campaign might have been removed, they might say they will sue whoever was responsible but does anybody believe that a company let this slide past all those who publish this porn? Where’s the proof they are going to sue, because sounds like words to me. Already their campaign picture ads are out there in the digital world and sounds like a play to garner attention which drives those sales and makes the owners gain more money, wealth and power. While all those who merely buy things keep supporting their agenda and keep stay in this continuous cycle of materialistic , meaningless crap. When a higher power comes in and shuts them down thereby making an example of them and what will or won’t be tolerated….then expect to see other companies doing the same. It’s all a play by the elite of this world to bring about the end of times that is predicted in the Bible. The entertainment industry is not hiding their satanic agenda and the awards ceremonies or opening ceremonies broadcast to the world are full of satanic symbolism trying to make us accept that Satan is the ruler of the world. It sounds so crazy, but open your eyes and start looking at what is in plain sight. Balencianaga is just a small part of this elite machine but this is a way to reach a certain audience and desensitize the shock of seeing this kind of ad, they want us to accept this as normal and it is most definitely not but what are you and I going to do about it,,,,ABSOLUTELY NOTHING ! o