Big businesses are no strangers to controversy. Hoping to maximize profit, they create advertisements to reach their desired audience and relate to their needs, fears, desires, whatever. This opens companies up to the scrutiny of the public. Recently, the German car company Volkswagen released an advertisement for their new model that left viewers disgusted and angry.
The commercial in question features upbeat music, bright colors, and…unfortunate racism. Boiled down to its most basic elements, the ad is of a white person’s hand controlling a black man like a puppet. The hand pushes and pokes the man away from the car being advertised and into a café called ‘Petit Colon.’
‘Petit Colon’ translates to ‘Little Colonist,’ a nod to the historical imperialist nature of many nations, including Germany in the early 20th century. The commercial’s portrayal of a black man being pushed into the ‘Little Colonist’ café is distasteful and wrong.
Some viewers pointed out that the commercial’s offense doesn’t stop there. During the ad, the new car’s name – ‘Der Neue Golf’ – phase onto the screen. Seems harmless enough, right? Wrong. The way in which the letters appear causes the offensive, racist, German version of the N-word to show up first. While it’s only on screen for a moment, it’s hard to believe that this was a coincidence or an accident.
After Instagram users and news sources complained about the car manufacturer’s flawed commercial, Volkswagen removed the ad from their Instagram page.
They also issued a statement that the video is “inappropriate and tasteless” and that the company strives to “position itself against all forms of racism, xenophobia, and discrimination.” This is a compelling statement, but actions speak louder than words, so Volkswagen still needs to prove itself as an anti-discriminatory brand.
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