City Beach Human Relations Fail
Caitlin Roper who is leading the campaign against City Beach’s pornified clothing range received a phone call from City Beach HR, Anita Dorwald. She was the City Beach rep who participated in the conciliation attempt for Caitlin’s Human Right’s Commission complaint last year. (Read more about that here.)
Caitlin’s report on the conversation is as follows:
Ms Dorwald said that if we are going to distribute flyers using their logo, they must be “factually correct” and then proceeded to quote the ‘headless, gagged, bruised women’ part. (see flyer here) I told her I could give her specific examples to back up each of those claims. She kept denying that they sold them. When I did start listing specific examples, she said, “Oh but we don’t sell those anymore, so that’s not factually correct.” The implication was that City Beach had proactively removed the offending shirts from sale, but in reality, after the clothing items had been available in stores for months, as well as advertised on their online shop, the time had come to phase them out and replace them with new stock.
Ms. Dorwald stated that City Beach doesn’t sell pornography. However, Two In The Shirt, TITS brand uses famous porn stars on their clothing designs. TITS was also nominated for ‘Best apparel’ award in the pornography industry’s annual awards ceremony, the 2012 AVN Awards, alongside ‘Best double penetration’ and ‘Best young girl scene’.
When I raised the issue of TITS brand, a brand City Beach has sold for at least two years, and their award nomination she said sarcastically, “Uh, I don’t really follow what the pornography industry is doing.”
She said she had no idea of any links to the pornography industry with the TITS brand, and how could they have known that?
I would have thought looking at the foreplay shirt or one of many others would suggest so much, or simply following the website URL printed on the inside of the TITS shirts would have also given her that info.
Taking a few seconds to think through the fact that the brand is called ‘TITS’ may have also alerted her to the pornographic nature of the shirts.
Then there is the ‘Hustler’ shirt they are selling ‘Talk Shit, Get Hit.’ That’s Hustler as in the notorious pornographic magazine. So their argument is that they didn’t know, but now that they do know, they don’t care.
More info on ‘Hustler’ can be found here. *caution and trigger warning* distressing content.
Ms. Dorwald kept making reference to my ‘moral high ground’ and I kept correcting her. I felt she was attempting to paint those objecting to porn t-shirts as overly sensitive moral zealots, as a way of absolving City Beach of their corporate responsibility to deal with these legitimate issues. I said it has nothing to do with being offended, or being sensitive, or whether or not I or anyone else likes the products- that the issue is with City Beach selling pornographic items to teenagers. She rejected my claim that pornographic items were sold to teenagers. I then asked if there were any age restrictions on purchasing these items, if a thirteen year old went to purchase, would anyone stop him? To which she admitted they would not.
The conversation just went round in circles for awhile, with her repeatedly throwing out the ‘but we don’t sell pornography’ and ‘morals effort’ arguments.
She concluded, regarding the flyers, that if I was going to use City Beach’s logo and distribute flyers, they must be factually correct “or else we will have to reconsider our legal position.”
We maintain that the flyers are ‘factually correct’ and have since added a blog post on www.porntees.blogspot.com with specific evidence to support claims made on our flyers. However we decided the flyers do need altering – we have now included more images of the t-shirts and merchandise sold in City Beach on the flyers. The merchandise speaks for itself.
I informed her we would be continuing with protests around the country, and of the strong positive reactions we had from the public who were horrified by the stock we showed them.
27 Comments
Excellent job as always, Caitlin! Very eloquent.
Thank you, just thank you.
I object to the fact that my children are confronted with men wearing t-shirts displaying naked or semi-naked women, by simply walking down the street. Why should my children be subjected to your erotic fantasies? It’s not fair. In fact it’s completely selfish!
Thank you for your efforts to ensure our young men and women aren’t subjected to this kind of demeaning and disgusting imagery when trying to buy surf gear. If City Beach think they’re only offending “moral zealots”, I’ll simply let my wallet do the talking. I wont buy another thing from them while they stock these plainly pornographic t-shirt designs and the TITS brand. I’d encourage everyone reading to do the same.
Thanks,
Read this tonight with my 15 year old girl and 12 year old boy. Both old enough and smart enough to get the whole “objectifing women” and the “repeated images builds morals” concepts.
helped me in my battle as a parent to fight the power of midea/marketing.
So encouraging to hear that you’re talking through these issues with your children Jeanette. Good on you!
Thanks for your hard work on this issue. Just wanted to encourage you – don’t give up! These changes don’t happen overnight, but require us to be tenacious and persistent. Be this generations William Wilberforce!
Awesome work Caitlin. I know it has been a difficult road for you. You have been very brave to put yourself in the firing line. Be assured there are many others supporting you and I’m one of your biggest fans.
Keep up the good fight. City beach is a corrupt organization when it comes to honesty, decency, and being civic minded. They are only concerned with making money and they don’t care how they do it. If selling porn makes them money then they will continue to do it. Congratulations to you for having the courage and conviction to take them on and make them accountable.
I am not an “overly sensitive moral zealot”. I am a father of two and run a charity dedicated to teaching young men positive values.
Caitlin, you’re doing a sensational job.
I love it!!!! Just looooove it!!! THAAAAANK YOOOUUUUU!!!!
This is the letter I sent via email, to the National HR Manager. We can only hope that it helps. Apathy is a curse. Everyone should boycott these stores AND send a letter of complaint. Women are able to vote with their feet – we buy our teenagers clothes largely. Every company only exists to make money. Pure and simple – no other reason. Stop their income and you stop their business.
Letter:-
For the Attention of :- Anita Dorwald, National HR Manager
I am writing to complain about the explicit and sexist tshirts advertised for sale on your website. I am the mother of both teenage girls and a teenage boy. I do not wish either gender to see these tshirts either on people or by passing your window. I have specifically alerted my teenage son who now largely shops for his own clothing, and suggests he avoids City Beach. I am sure he would be horrified at these tshirts, and would never be seen wearing one, but the ban will affect your sales because he won’t buy other clothing items from you which may well be acceptable.
The content of these tshirts focuses on the sexuality of the models often simply narrowed down to breasts or buttocks. Is this all women are worth??? This clearly sends the message that women are sex objects ONLY and that they therefore exist only for the use of men. Many of your tshirts feature violence – gagged women, headless women.. Having worked in an area which dealt with domestic violence in the courts on a daily basis, I cannot believe you could be so irresponsible as to feature images like this on Tshirts. These items of clothing may well be bought by sick men and that is sad enough, but then they are worn in public where everyone else has to suffer their exposure, including young children who are so impressionable.
Please remove these items for sale, and replace them with clever well designed tshirts which sell because of their comfort, quality and non offensive images.
Diane
Well done Caitlin
Won’t somebody please think of the children
And the women. And the men. And the teenagers. Because the sex industry doesn’t care how old you are or how many tired Simpsons references you trot out, when it makes you collateral damage for its own profit.
Simple. I will not approach any guy who wears that sort of t-shirt, and I encourage all young women with a shred of dignity and sense to avoid guys who choose to buy and wear those sort of t-shirts. Show the men that we do not tolerate these sort of attitudes towards women.
Of course, I cannot change people. If you want to encourage that sort of behaviour, go on. I will just sing a dirge for all other women.
Actually, these are exactly the boys who you should approach when you see them wear it. Chances are there is not much positive parental involvement in their homes/ lives. Image is very important to them for various reasons. Compliment them on their hair, or their build, something positive, and then talk about the T-shirt. Ask them if they have thought though what it represents, and the other issues we are familiar with. Why not offer them $20 to buy it off them there and then even. These kids have peers who chances are wear similar clothing. Stopping supply with this clothing chain is important, but its the kids we also need to talk to
I have written to CityBeach. The tshirts not only constitute sexual harassment, but incite sexually violent behaviour. It’s not only the victims and the impressionable that see these tshirts. What about offenders who are trying to rehabilitate? Trigger much?
Go Caitlin and please don’t give up…. thats what these companies and organsisations are hoping for- we all support you and what you and “Collective Shout” are on a mission to achieve- well done!
Thanks so much for your encouragement and support Leonie!
I facilitate Men’s Behaviour Change Groups. Blokes who have used violence and abuse and intimidation against their partners and children, who want to change their behaviours and thinking regarding women and their own often ingrained sense of entitlement within their family and society in general.
“Talk Shit Get Hit?” You have got to be joking me. Surely that sentiment is as illegal as racial or religious vilification? It is certainly as damaging to our young women who battle against enough inequality and sexism as it is.
Couldn’t agree with you more Mike. Thanks so much for posting your comment. We would be grateful if you could circulate our petition calling on City Beach to remove their porn themed merchandise. http://www.change.org/petitions/head-office-stop-selling-porn-t-shirts
Well done Caitlin, keep up the good work. Dont get disillusioned. In the end you will see a positive outcome I am sure.
Julia
I’ve just written to City Beach as well. Keep up this great work CS.
CS, don’t be intimidated by their legal threats. They’re bluffing. A case of this nature would be huge in the media, and would bring their company alot of unwanted media attention and criticism, and I suspect there would be protests from the mainstream population.
I have shopped at City Beach for the last five years. Next week I am personally going in to speak to the manager to inform him/her that the I will no longer be shopping at the store. I am outraged at the t-shirts and merchandise they are selling to our youth. I was not aware of it until I went to the Generation Next seminar on Friday. This is a fight I am proud to join.
Good on you Victoria! Thanks for your support.
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[...] I also have two sons that love fashion so last year at one of my youngest sons favourite times of year, the end of season sales, we were in Jay jay’s. While he was trying on clothes I came across a t-shirt with pornographic depictions and asked the female sales assistant who I write to about it because my kids shop there, she agreed with me they were offensive and gave me the details. I’ve also seen many similar t-shirts being worn around in daily life, but didn’t realise the extent of the porn seeping into mainstream fashion and mainstream clothing stores until reading http://collectiveshout.org/2012/02/city-beach-defends-sale-of-porn-themed-clothing/ [...]