Kim Kardashian says she's "re-evaluating" her relationship with Balenciaga after "disturbing" ad campaign
Kim Kardashian's future with fashion powerhouse Balenciaga is now uncertain after the Paris-based brand unveiled ads last week depicting children holding plush bears in bondage-style attire. Kardashian, who in recent years has served as an ambassador of sorts to the brand – wearing the clothing to large events and promoting their pieces on her social media – now says she is rethinking that relationship.
The ads, which were said to be to promote Balenciaga's plush bear bags, were part of the brand's holiday campaign. The bears, however, are wearing BDSM gear and are being held by children that appear to be no more than 5 years old. In one of the pictures, a child is also surrounded by what appear to be wine and cocktail glasses.
"I have been quiet for the past few days, not because I haven't been disgusted and outraged by the recent Balenciaga campaigns, but because I wanted an opportunity to speak to their team to understand for myself how this could have happened," she tweeted on Sunday.
"As a mother of four, I have been shaken by the disturbing images," she wrote. "The safety of children must be held with the highest regard and any attempts to normalize child abuse of any kind should have no place in our society — period."
Kardashian went on to say that she "appreciates" the brand's removal of the campaign and its apology and that after speaking with representatives, she believes "they understand the seriousness of the issue" and won't repeat the situation.
"As for my future with Balenciaga, I am currently re-evaluating my relationship with the brand, basing it off their willingness to accept accountability for something that should have never happened to begin with — & the actions I am expecting to see them take to protect children," she said.
Photos from the campaign have been deleted from Balenciaga's Instagram page, with the brand saying that the bags "should not have been featured with children in this campaign." The campaign also included an image that showed a document that appeared to be the 2002 Supreme Court case Ashcroft v. Free Speech Coalition, which struck down two provisions of the Child Pornography Prevention Act that were said to be "overbroad and vague."
"We apologize for displaying unsettling documents in our campaign," Balenciaga said. "We take this matter very seriously and are taking legal action against the parties responsible for creating the set and including unapproved items for our Spring 23 campaign photoshoot. We strongly condemn abuse of children in any form. We stand for children safety and well-being."