How do you top “over the top”?
When modern advertising is constantly looking to “break barriers” and take people “out of their comfort zone” to sell products, there are no limits to what the evil geniuses on Madison Avenue can construct.
How about using very young children holding teddy bears dressed in bondage outfits? The products they’re selling appear to be innocuous. But the outrageous, shocking use of children holding a beloved, fuzzy child’s companion dressed in a sexually suggestive outfit goes beyond “generating a buzz” and enters the realm of child pornography.
the brand "Balenciaga" just did a uh….. interesting… photoshoot for their new products recently which included a very purposely poorly hidden court document about 'virtual child porn'
normal stuff pic.twitter.com/zjMN5WhZ0s
— shoe (@shoe0nhead) November 21, 2022
One child stood on a couch while holding a purple teddy bear which was dressed in a bondage outfit, including leather straps wrapped around its neck connected to ruffled thigh straps, according to online screenshots. In another photo, a different child stood in front of a table of Balenciaga merchandise holding another bondage teddy bear; this stuffed animal wore a mesh shirt, had leather straps tied around its ankles and wrists along with a choker around its neck with a metal padlock attached. This bear also appeared to have dyed fur like that of a black eye.
There’s also a photo of a purse lying on top of some papers that include a copy of a Supreme Court decision that defined child pornography, so the ad campaign’s creator was too clever by half.
But wait! What you’re seeing is not really what you’re seeing. It’s a mirage, says a fashion website “Highsnobiety.”
“Shoe” is actually June Nicole Lapine, a YouTuber of some note. And she’s being accused of making a mountain out of a molehill.
She begins by highlighting Balenciaga’s new Objects collection, promoted with a campaign featuring children clutching the brand’s harness-clad teddy bear bags, accessories that debuted at Paris Fashion Week Spring/Summer 2023. While some have objected to Balenciaga’s decision to place the BDSM-inspired bags in the hands of young kids, the isolated campaign isn’t exactly indicative of a wider conspiracy — yet Lapine builds her case by erroneously linking the campaign to photographs promoting the label’s collaboration with adidas, a totally separate project (emphasis added).
This is more than a crime against good taste. It’s an outrage against decency. Using the innocence of children in this ham-handed way doesn’t prove that anyone is “edgy” or “hip.” It reveals a cynicism so deep that it separates the creators from the rest of civilized society.
The “wider conspiracy” involves Balenciaga deleting its Instagram account. Apparently, according to the self-proclaimed “Snobs,” the company does this on a regular basis. Hence, it has nothing to do with the hyper-offensive pictures of children holding a children’s toy dressed as if it’s ready to go to a BDSM party.
Also, the purse sitting atop a SCOTUS decision on child pornography is another ad campaign altogether. Apparently, Balenciaga is obsessed with child porn.
Who cares about a “wider conspiracy”? What about the children? I’m sure pedophiles across the nation are swooning in ecstasy over this abomination, but what about everyone else? “High fashion” my ass. It is, in fact, the old definition of obscenity: “no redeeming social value.”
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