.....to think using photos of half naked women on a company van to sell workwear is wrong, wrong,wrong?

[Imnotonajourney]

I ve been getting more and more angry about this as the day has gone along and felt I must share.....
This morning on the school run with my three dcs, all under 8, I sat behind a Dassy company vehicle whilst in a traffic jam. My son pointed out that there was a 'naked girl' on the van in front. To my amazement the entire back of this large van was covered in a photographic scene. A workman fully clothed with tool bag entering a room with a woman stood at the door wearing nothing but a pair of lacy pants (bum cheeks on clear display), stockings and suspenders. Nothing more. I was struck dumb until my son pointed out that 'that you can even see a bit of her boob!' (Which you could). It was then that I tried to calmly discuss how ridiculous the whole scene was and that it was absolutely wrong. I still can' t sort of believe that any company, in the 21st Century thinks this is ok. I have looked at the company's website which prides it self on equal opportunities, ethics and so on. Yeah right! However the image we saw on the van is there along with others that look like they re straight out of an adult movie. I've emailed the company to complain. Do you think I m overeacting? Your thoughts please.......

Oh, they talk a good game, don't they?

Hypocrites.

Thank you all for your messages. To their credit they gave responded to my email this morning. However that's the good news over with...... Three women signed the email saying that this 'irresistible campaign' was created solely by women and that it is empowering women as each woman in the scene is depicted as 'an equal player'. Are these women for real??? I am so depressed that women had ANYTHING to do with this at all and then to defend it with this deluded tosh about empowered women in control of the scene depicted. I'm heartbroken....

I'm off to make a brew and think about what to do next. I m determined to do something about this....please make your feelings known mumsnetters to both me and this company. I ll be back in five.

The half naked woman draped on the step ladder with her head at about the same height as the fully dressed workman's crotch definitely looks empowered and an equal player.

She certainly doesn't look vulnerable and dominated or like she's about to perform a sex act. No siree.

i have emailed, but what a sad and disappointing reply! and to top it off just logged on FB and the top post is this (hoping it's ok to use links here?) www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/12/03/alexander-wang-denim-ads_n_6262924.html?ncid=fcbklnkushpmg00000063
it's everywhere :(

It is deluded tosh Imnot.

How can you be an equal player when you're standing in your sodding pants for the titillation of male viewers?!

The women may be made up, or, sadly (and more likely) they're real. Lots of women are invested in misogynist gender and sex roles, and lots of them pop up to defend stuff like this.

Urgh

It's the perception of making money which is twisting the arguments. If it was a straight intellectual fight the egalitarians would win every day.

It doesn't matter what their intentions were. The point is, you are a potential customer and you find it offensive.

Repeat till they get the message.

can one of the posters who sy they've googled this, please post a link so we can see.All I get is Hi Vis jackets and work boots

By the way, the attitude of those women who came up with it totally belies the fact that they don't think women will be THE CONSUMERS OF THEIR PRODUCTS.

I imagine their argument is that the women in the ads are 'powerful' because they're 'sexy' and 'in charge' (in some deluded way).

What the fuck am I or any other female tradesperson supposed to see in that? Are we supposed to identify with the women? No, hang on, they're IN THEIR PANTS and being stared at by men (and let's not even get into the fact they're all skinny). Are we supposed to identify with the workmen? No, hang on, they're men staring at tits.

The assumption here is clearly that workmen are all men, also all men who like looking at tits; women don't do jobs like that and their worth is measured by their sexual attractiveness.

How am I supposed to feel empowered by that?

Also, what kind of culture does this make for when I'm on site with a bunch of men?

Christ, this has made me cross.

I'm with you all! It is endemic and it has to be challenged! I wrote a stinging reply back to the marketing dept. which I will try and post here later (I m up to my next in school Christmas Fayre stuff at the moment!). I m not going to give up on this one. I ve never done anything like this before but I m committed to getting this pulled. The website has a whole range of photos showing the 'irresistible' campaign. The one I saw on the van is the half naked women standing with the workman walking in the door. A friend has also seen the van in this area but I m assuming there are many more charging around Europe. Charming....

marnia does this work for you? should be lots of ladies in underwear! www.google.co.uk/search?q=dassy+workwear&es_sm=122&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ei=wbCBVM-nFMOa7gbe2IDADA&ved=0CAkQ_AUoAg&biw=1242&bih=615
and adam, exactly, you should email them just that

That is horrid. Beyond tacky in a trade mag, but on a van hideous. What were they thinking (no doubt that the ads are "witty and provocative")

Empowering FFS - I have never been in my pants in a room with fully dressed men, but I don't think I would feel empowered.

The images are in the advertisements section of their website, marnia, but to avoid upping their website traffic just google dassy workwear and click on images.

Dassy on Google Images

Quick!!!! Get Mr Farage on the case.

He seems to have a thing about boobs in public being embarrassing to some and that women should be discreetly not seen.

Misses the point, though not completely...

It's clothed porn.

The one where he's kneeling and sanding the floor she looks more powerful than him. The one where he's up the ladder she definitely doesn't, and the one with the plumber where she's on the bed he just looks embarrassed, like he's thinking 'Oh.my.God. I need to get this sink plumbed as fast as I can and get out of here.'

I am so bloody sick of this though. All these women who have bought this effing ridiculous line that 'half naked' = 'empowered'.

OP was the one on the van the one where she's holding a pair of handcuffs behind her back? I find it very hard to read that image as her in control - she looks really vulnerable and as if the handcuffs are about to be used on her, not him. In the one with the sander she's at least wearing a top.

I would draft thusly: to ASA, and the company's board of directors

CAP code, harm to children, offence to the public and sexual imagery

www.asa.org.uk/~/media/Files/ASA/Misc/ASAHarmOffenceReport.ashx

(see page 18)

YABU. MN - naked bf boobs=good. naked non-bf boobs=bad.

Just seen the link. This images appear on the side of the company vans? Unbelievable!

So a small bunch of women think they're empowering? Makes me think of that awful video that a poster flagged up a few weeks ago; the one with the young women with the black eye saying that if a man hits you you should hold on to him because it means he loves you.

Like her - if it was in fact real - that bunch of women have bought into the nasty misogynistic crap that women have been fed since the beginning of time and, god help us, still seem to accept.

naked bf boobs?

Did you actually read the thread, windchime?

For the one or two people in the thread who seem to insist on failing to spot the problem, it's that the photos pose a stranger, who is a tradesman, happening upon a partially clothed female in her home who appears intent on putting herself in all manner of exposed and available positions, thereby giving a very corrupt and perverted interpretation of sexual attraction.

It's misogynistic and sexist propaganda dressed up as an advert. That's what's so damaging to children, who might think that it's a realistic view of society.

Exactly, Dora. And it basically says that women aren't going to be buying trade workwear, they're only there to be ogled by guys wearing it.

There will doubtless be more people along shortly to be wilfully obtuse