Fashion brand Calvin Klein has released a new ad campaign that features a pregnant transgender man.
Calvin Klein Feature Pregnant Man in New Campaign
The campaign was released on America’s Mother’s Day and sparked a debate on social media. The clothing brand captioned the post by stating that they wanted to put a spotlight on “the realities of new families”.
Roberto Bete and Erika Fernandes are a Brazilian couple who are expecting their son at any moment.
The full caption on the post read:
“Today, in support of women and mothers all over the world, we’re spotlighting the realities of new families…Erika Fernandes and Roberto Bete are expecting parents from Brazil. Roberto is due to give birth to his and Erika’s son Noah any day now.”
Laying in bed and posing for the clothing brand, a quote from the couple read:
“We can reproduce biologically or from the heart… Our place is to love and be loved.”
Despite many people on social media regarding the bold post as “cool” and “beautiful”, many also attacked the “woke campaign” and even pledged to “boycott Calvin Klein”. A user on Twitter wrote:
“Time to ditch you, Calvin Klein.”
Another user responded to those attacking the campaign for “celebrating the diversity of families for (US) Mother’s Day.” Their tweet read, “It’s not a new concept, and neither is the bigoted backlash.”
The person continued: “It’s shocking that regressive Conservatives haven’t moved on in the last 50+ years, from when Saatchi & Saatchi launched the iconic “pregnant man” ad promoting contraception.”
Calvin Klein Feature Pregnant Man in New Campaign
Responding to the backlash, Calvin Klein stood their ground and emphasised its aim of inclusivity. The company said, “e embrace this platform as an inclusive and respectful environment for individualism and self-expression. At Calvin Klein, we tolerate everything except intolerance— any intolerant commentary will be removed, and any accounts issuing hateful statements may be blocked”.
