A Gap ad for the brand’s ‘Make Love’ campaign, featuring Indian Sikh-American actor Waris Ahluwahlia and English filmmaker Quentin Jones, was vandalized with racist comments recently in New York.
The word ‘Love’ was struck out and replaced with ‘Bombs’, in addition to a caption reading “Please Stop Driving TAXIS!”
Media commentator Arsalan Iftikhar tweeted a photograph of the vandalized ad, wanting everyone to “see how millions of brown people are viewed in American today”, and beseeching his followers and friends to share the photograph and create awareness.
Gap contacted Iftikhar directly in less than a day, asking for details on the location of the ad. In an act of solidarity, the company also changed its Twitter background to an image of the ad.
It’s not the first time that the fashion house has used unconventional models and represented minority races and ethnicities, and it’s nice seeing them championing cultural diversity yet again.
[via The Daily Beast]