So you knew this was coming right? After SheaMoisture became a trending topic for its #HairHate ad yesterday which failed to include any women who look like the individuals who actually buy their products — i.e. Black women with coarse hair — the brand is now feigning ignorance.
Last night, in an Instagram post SheaMoisture admitted they “f-ed this one up,” explaining in a roundabout way, “we should know better,” but the lack of an actual apology or explanation for why no one knew better leaves me less than moved. The post read:
Wow, okay – so guys, listen, we really f-ed this one up. Please know that our intention was not – and would never be – to disrespect our community, and as such, we are pulling this piece immediately because it does not represent what we intended to communicate. You guys know that we have always stood for inclusion in beauty and have always fought for our community and given them credit for not just building our business but for shifting the beauty landscape. So, the feedback we are seeing here brings to light a very important point. While this campaign included several different videos showing different ethnicities and hair types to demonstrate the breadth and depth of each individual’s hair journey, we must absolutely ensure moving forward that our community is well-represented in each one so that the women who have led this movement never feel that their hair journey is minimized in any way. We are keenly aware of the journey that WOC face – and our work will continue to serve as the inspiration for work like the Perception Institute’s Good Hair Study/Implicit Association Test that suggests that a majority of people, regardless of race and gender, hold some bias towards women of color based on their textured or natural hair. So, you’re right. We are different – and we should know better.
Thank you all, as always, for the honest and candid feedback. We hear you. We’re listening. We appreciate you. We count on you. And we’re always here for you. Thank you, #SheaFam, for being there for us, even when we make mistakes. Here’s to growing and building together…
To be honest, after reading this “explanation” (read: non-apology) I’m more inclined to side with the commenter below:
- blessedlioness_F-ck that! You guys knew what you were doing 🙄
There’s no way SheaMoisture didn’t know what they were doing. And, though I hate to say it, there’s no way they care about their customers to pull this stunt. After all of the issues the brand has had in the past as they’ve tried to diversify their consumer base, they should have a damn focus group before anything goes out to the public if the individuals in charge still can’t manage to see how they’re alienating their core buyer more and more as the years go by. No one who understands or respects the fact that Black women built this brand would’ve been okay giving this ad the okay. Only time will tell if SheaMoisture is really listening as they say they are. Will you give them another chance?
