Over the past week or so, everyone online has been engaged in the discussion about Sydney Sweeney’s “good genes,” including me.
But if we get caught up in arguing about whether or not a clothing ad that obviously plays on racial hierarchy is related to eugenics, we might wind up distracted from some other kind of important things going on in the country. Namely, policies and practices being enforced right now that actually bolster white supremacy more than a single denim ad ever could. And maybe that’s the point.
The dog-whistle of eugenics is clearly present in the American Eagle ad — and it hits different as white supremacist movements are on the rise right now. There’s been an onslaught of articles this week from right-leaning organizations such as Fox News that insist there is nothing wrong with the ad, even going so far as to accuse those of us with media literacy and a basic understanding of U.S. and world history of being too sensitive, too “woke,” and that we’re somehow reaching.
In their steadfast insistence that we ignore the “great jeans” pun that invokes attitudes of Aryan-inspired supremacy — whiteness, blonde hair and Sweeney’s crystal blue eyes — they give the game up. By attempting to convince us that we’re not seeing what we think we’re seeing, they are attempting to distract us. And it’s not going to work.
