Dove has issued an apology for an advertising campaign branded “racist” which included an image of a black woman removing her top to reveal a white model underneath. The series of adverts, which have provoked outcry on social media after being circulated on Facebook, also showed a third image portraying a caucasian woman transforming into an Asian woman as she undresses. Following the furore, Dove published a statement which stated: “An image we recently posted on Facebook missed the mark in representing women of colour thoughtfully. We deeply regret the offence it caused. “As part of a campaign for Dove body wash, a three-second video clip was posted to the US Facebook page. “This did not represent the diversity of real beauty which is something Dove is passionate about and is core to our beliefs, and it should not have happened. “We have removed the post and have not published any other related content. We apologise deeply and sincerely for the offence that it has caused.” The advert was highlighted by Naomi Blake, who posted the images on social media The images first went viral after an American makeup artist, Naomi Blake, shared them with her followers on social media. She said: “What does America tell black people...that we are judged by the colour of our skin and that includes what is considered beautiful in this country. "To know that colorism is a problem in the world, that includes bleaching the skin, and they would put this ad out without a thought...the tone deafness in these companies makes no sense." The controversy comes two years after the cosmetics brand faced a wave of criticism for the product literature on one of its self-tanning products. The “summer glow” lotion, aimed at people with “normal to dark skin”, was labelled racist because it suggested that consumers with darker skin were not “normal”. Meanwhile, in 2011 Dove was again accused of racism for using a before and after image in an advert for its “visiblecare” range, which appeared to place three women on a colour gradient. The image, which portrayed a black, an Asian and a white woman standing together, appeared to suggest that the lightest skinned woman was the end result.
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