What do CoverGirl makeup products and the NFL have in common? They both enable fans and consumers to be domestically violent, according to journalist Adele Stan.
Stan, infuriated that the makeup brand continued its partnership with the NFL in the wake of several domestic violence incidents, took to the internet to call for a boycott of CoverGirl products.
The new advertisements that Stan and a few others created show a noticeable black eye on a smiling model wearing the eye shadow from CoverGirl’s “Baltimore Ravens” makeup collection.
The boycott will continue until NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell leaves his position. It includes Twitter hashtags like #GetYourGameFaceOn.
There are ways to protest something. This is not it.
Displaying a woman with a black eye and a huge smile is an exploitation of a delicate situation.
Moreover, it piggybacks on the overexposure of Janay Rice, alluding to her specific situation in order to propagate a tasteless campaign.
An abused woman is not the correct image to use, nor is it being used in an ethical context. The photo editing actually looks like a glamorization of violence.
Although CoverGirl should be taking some sort of action, this ad is not the right way to encourage it.
CoverGirl is a company that makes affordable cosmetic products for women. Millions of women purchase these products to complement their appearance for the makeup purposes only, not to fund the NFL.
Telling people to refuse mascara is not enough to convince the NFL to fire a ?commissioner.
The abusive behavior of some NFL players and the passivity of Goodell in punishing them are completely inappropriate and wrong. Other sponsors of the NFL have acknowledged this and dropped out.
We agree that CoverGirl, being a company marketed toward women, should at the very least make some sort of ?statement about domestic abuse.
However, punishing CoverGirl by boycotting them is not going to convince the company to drop out of a business deal, nor is releasing an inappropriately edited ad.
We support groups that raise awareness about domestic abuse. We support groups that provide help for battered persons. We want the NFL to stop brushing these issues under the rug.
These are great ends. This boycott is not an ethical means. We need to find a direct way to get the NFL to regularly respond to any type of abusive case with its players immediately.
Punishing a makeup brand, in the meantime, will do nothing but foster bad feelings.
