Reebok Mocks Trump's Sexist Comments to Brigitte Macron

| © ALLARD-POOL/SIPA/REX/Shutterstock

Pre-Trump, it wasn’t that often a huge corporate fashion and lifestyle conglomerate got into a politically charged dialogue. But that’s exactly what Reebok did after President Trump remarked that the French first lady, Brigitte Macron, was “in such good shape — beautiful,” during his recent trip to France. However, recently, Reebok took to Twitter, Trump’s media platform of choice, to jokingly admonish the president for commenting on President Emmanuel Macron’s wife on her appearance.
Macron, who at 64 is 25 years older than her husband, received the assessment, made with the presumption that for a woman of her age, she is “in such good shape — beautiful,” with dignity and shrugged it off. (For the record, Trump is 24 years older than his wife, Melania.) Reebok, a company owned by Adidas, picked up on the fact that many people found the president’s comments sexist. After all, the notion that a woman’s appearance is up for scrutiny by a man in power is the definition of the male gaze, a term coined by feminist scholar and filmmaker Laura Mulvey.
The exchange occurred on June 13, when the U.S. and French presidents toured the museums at Les Invalides with their respective wives. After completing the tour, Trump gestured to Macron’s body, and remarked on her physique. The exchange, which was captured on video and posted to the French government’s Facebook page draws many parallels to the infamous Access Hollywood tapes where President Trump confesses, “When you’re a star, they let you do it. You can do anything.”

The following day, Reebok, in an attempt to disprove the aforementioned claim that “you can do anything,” posted the following on Twitter:

In case you were wondering when it IS appropriate to say, “You’re in such good shape…beautiful,”… THIS: pic.twitter.com/Z1cnnRD8Ut
— Reebok (@Reebok) July 14, 2017
The question now becomes, how far will players in the free-market go to criticize the Trump administration, and/or the individual behavior of the president?
A post shared by Dior Official (@dior) on Jun 18, 2017 at 7:04am PDT
For the past two seasons, the fashion industry has used international fashion weeks to broadcast political messages of resistance to the current regime. Take for example, Christian Dior’s “We Should All Be Feminists” t-shirts (which debuted two months before the U.S. election), or Prabal Gurung’s entire collection of slogan tees, with messages like “The Future Is Female,” “We Will Not Be Silenced,” and “Nevertheless She Persisted,” (which followed the outcome of the election).
A post shared by Prabal Gurung (@prabalgurung) on Jul 10, 2017 at 8:36am PDT
It so seems that when it comes to fashion, the personal is most certainly a political matter, especially in this climate.

Culture Trips launched in 2011 with a simple yet passionate mission: to inspire people to go beyond their boundaries and experience what makes a place, its people and its culture special and meaningful. We are proud that, for more than a decade, millions like you have trusted our award-winning recommendations by people who deeply understand what makes places and communities so special.

Our immersive trips, led by Local Insiders, are once-in-a-lifetime experiences and an invitation to travel the world with like-minded explorers. Our Travel Experts are on hand to help you make perfect memories. All our Trips are suitable for both solo travelers, couples and friends who want to explore the world together.?>

All our travel guides are curated by the Culture Trip team working in tandem with local experts. From unique experiences to essential tips on how to make the most of your future travels, we’ve got you covered.

Culture Trip Spring Sale

Save up to $1,100 on our unique small-group trips! Limited spots.

X
close-ad
Edit article