Pepsi announced Wednesday it’s nixing an ad featuring Kendall Jenner that’s been slammed by pretty much everyone on the internet for trivializing protest movements, New York magazine reports.
“Pepsi was trying to project a global message of unity, peace, and understanding,” the company said in a press release. “Clearly we missed the mark, and we apologize. We did not intend to make light of any serious issue. We are removing the content and halting any further rollout.”
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In the ad, Jenner hits a curiously vague anti-bad stuff protest as one might “hit” a nightclub. With a Pepsi in hand, she walks with smiling picketers, swapping cheerful glances with folks of all creeds, colors, and genders. Then comes the climax: As Jenner and her fellow protesters face off against a line of police officers, Jenner hands one an ice-cold Pepsi. He smiles, and the move diffuses all tension from the rally before the crowd goes wild.
The spot drew criticism from activists like Deray McKesson, of the Black Lives Matter movement, and Bernice King, Martin Luther King Jr.’s daughter, who dogged Pepsi for suggesting an issue as thorny as police brutality or racism could be solved with a soft drink.
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