Chrysler ad drives gay activists crazy
Gay rights activists are looking to put the brakes on a car advert which they claim portrays gay people in a derogatory manner.
The advertising campaign for the new Chrysler Dodge Caliber features a tough looking man being turned into a pastel clad “fairy” walking dogs on pink leashes with the slogan, Anything but Cute.
Gay advocates believe the commercial is stereotypical and offensive to gay men.
Jeffrey Montgomery, executive director of the Triangle Foundation, told the Detroit Free Press, “This guy looks pretty gay to me, I’m willing to believe they didn’t intend it to be a gay man, but I don’t believe they’re shocked someone would draw that conclusion.”
An online marketing monitor for gays and lesbians, Commercial Closet, said in a review of the advert, “It directly finds humour with the term fairy, referring not just to the type that flies around with a magic wand, but also the universally recognisable gay stereotype of an effeminate gay man.”
Chrysler confirmed there have been an average number of complaints but said the man was not intended to be gay.
Spokeswoman Surava Bliss said: “We’re kind of surprised that people are making a conclusion about someone’s sexual orientation based on the clothes they’re wearing.”
The advert will continue running.
