German based Volkswagen, one of the top sellers in the French car market, recently pulled out a social media advertisement after it was heavily criticized for its racist overtones.
The ten-second ad posted across Instagram, FB and Twitter, showed a massive white hand intrude in and push a black man away from next to a new Volkswagen Golf on the road. The hand then moved on to flick the black man into a French café.
Commenters on social media were disgusted by the overt racism at display in the advertisement. Volkswagen immediately removed the ad from across all social media.
“Without question: the video is inappropriate and tasteless,” Volkswagen wrote. “We will clarify how something like this could happen, and there will be consequences.”
“Many initiatives in the company and in our global workforce promote diversity, integration and unprejudiced cooperation,” Volkswagen said. “That makes it all the more annoying that we made this mistake.”
Finding its roots in Nazi Germany to produce the people’s car, Volkswagen realizes the precarious situation it is in considering its history and the way people look at the brand. They vow to position themselves against all forms of xenophobia, racism and discrimination.
YouTube Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CBTs67Oh1MI