Target Responds to ‘White Annie’ Campaign Backlash [Photos]

BY: Denver Sean

Published 10 years ago

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Did any of you love muffins catch the Annie remake over the holiday weekend?

In conjunction with the film, Target released a limited ‘Annie’ apparel collection for little girls.

While the movie stars Quvenzhané Wallis, who is Black, as “Annie,” Target’s in-store ads for the “Annie for Target” collection feature all-white models.

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There’s a circulating Change.org petition that’s been signed by thousands asking Target to replace the ads.

“These grossly misleading ads are adding to the divide and does (sic.) not give young African American girls aspiring to become actors anything to be optimistic about,” the petition reads.

via CNN:

Prior to the movie’s Dec. 19 release, Target partnered with Renée Ehrlich Kalfus, the costume designer for the new “Annie” movie. In November, the department store began selling clothes inspired by the orphan character’s wardrobe. The collection includes 26 tights, jeans, dresses, shirts and accessories ranging from $4 to $30.

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Joshua Thomas, a Target spokesman, noted that the in-store ads actually feature girls of various ethnic backgrounds. The ad for the online store features one black girl and two white girls.

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Since the collection was designed to have a limited-run, it’ll be out of Target stores by the end of this week.

Target says they won’t be apologizing to Quvenzhané Wallis, but they admit they had preliminary conversations about Willis modeling the clothes, but it never materialized.

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Do you think Target owes Quvenzhané Wallis an apology — or are people making a big deal out of nothing?

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