“Heinz Faces Backlash: Controversial Ad Dismisses Black Culture Days After Fatherhood Debate!”
The bride is surrounded by older white guests, possibly her in-laws, and a younger white groom on her right, along with an older Black woman, perhaps a relative.
Heinz sparked backlash for perpetuating racial bias against Black people after releasing two different controversial ads
Image credits: Erik Mclean
Nels subsequently took to his X page (formerly known as Twitter) to share a snap of the ad with a quote from Nas’ 2012 song Daughters: “‘For my brothers with daughters’ Because, believe it or not, Black girls have Dads too.”
A slew of people echoed Nels’ disappointment as an X user commented: “Total erasure of Black fathers by such a mainstream brand is shocking. How did this get approved?”
A person wrote: “This is real sad pic. Black girls indeed have dads, but the sad part is that most of them are not around.”
A separate individual chimed in: “It’s subliminal messaging. It’s a ‘subtle’ way of perpetuating myths. The media have been doing this for years.”
In response to growing and widespread criticism, Heinz issued an apology, telling The Independent on Sunday (October 6): “We always appreciate members of the public’s perspective on our campaigns.
“We understand how this ad could have unintentionally perpetuated negative stereotypes.
“We extend our deepest apologies and will continue to listen, learn, and improve to avoid this happening again in the future.”
However, amid the UK currently observing Black History Month, the insensitive advertisement continued to ignite negative reactions.
