Diesel just announced its newest ad campaign featuring major stars such as Nicki Minaj in order to combat bullying. The campaign features artists rocking garments with graphics of slurs and other terms that are often used to insult or bash them. While the campaign is intended to take a stand against bullying and reclaim some of the derogatory terms, some people are taking issue with the campaign not including being inclusive enough. Amber Rose, in particular, released a lengthy statement on Instagram on Wednesday (Sept. 19), sharing her frustrations with the campaign and repeatedly not having a seat at the table when she has been promoting similar messages for years.
“I am extremely frustrated,” Rose wrote in a gallery post on IG. “Every single year I put my blood, sweat and tears into my slutwalk. I did not create the SlutWalk movement. I did, however bring it to the forefront for this generation. People remind of this daily, through their deliberate attacks and evil comments. It becomes extremely frustrating when brands are ‘inspired’ by the movement and curate my actual life story and use it as a marketing tool.”
Rose listed examples in which she has tried to combat bullying and slut-shaming, specifically with her SlutWalk, which is now in its third year. “The Amber Rose SlutWalk and SlutWalks all around the globe, do not receive the attention or support they deserve,” she continued. “I do interview after interview to bring more awareness about the equality issues we deal with as women and people….. Body shaming, Fat shaming, slut shaming and victim blaming. I take a lot of punches and a lot of scrutiny and I’m cool with that cuz I do it for the greater good.”
While Rose stated that she doesn’t seek recognition for her actions, she finds it frustrating that she is often left out of the conversation or excluded from events that fall in line with her messaging. “I remember a few years back I used to put #MILFIN and #MILF on all of my post to only see a music video about milfs that I was not invited to be in… cool,” she added, referencing Fergie’s 2017 video, “M.I.L.F.$.” “I get it, I was an actual Stripper, I’m not worthy. Then I show up to the VMAs with my team with outfits that say slut and fa**ot etc and I go online and see huge brands take that and run with it and still no phone call.”
Rose signed her message with “The Real Bad Guy,” which appears to be a dig at Diesel, since some of its pieces feature “The Bad Guy” on them. The phrase has also been used repeatedly by Nicki Minaj, although Rose stated that she has nothing against the artists featured in the campaign.
Check out Amber Rose’s full statement along with examples of her standing up to bullies and slut-shamers below.
READ MORE: Amber Rose’s SlutWalk Aims To Unite All In Divided Times