H&M is in hot water this week after posting a photo on their website of a black child model wearing a hoodie that reads “Coolest Monkey in the Jungle”.
Singer-songwriter The Weeknd previously teamed up with Swedish retailer H&M for a limited edition menswear collection. On Monday, January 8th The Weekend announced that he will no longer be working with H&M due to the photo.
The Weeked said in a tweet “Woke up this morning stoked and embarrassed by this photo. I’m deeply offended and will not be working with @hm anymore…”
The term “monkey” has been used as a racial slur towards the black community for centuries. For a in-depth analysis of them term, HuffPost has published an explanation that features various examples.
H&M has since apologized. The brand said "We understand that many people are upset about the image. We, who work at H&M, can only agree. We are deeply sorry that the picture was taken, and we also regret the actual print. Therefore, we have not only removed the image from our channels, but also the garment from our product offering globally. It is obvious that our routines have not been followed properly. This is without any doubt. We will thoroughly investigate why this happened to prevent this type of mistake from happening again.”
The photo sparked conversation throughout social media. Many were outraged, and just as many people were shocked that the reference even existed. One commenter said "If you are shocked you might be part of the problem." Image Source: Twitter