WEBVTT - The Sezzy Scandals 0:00:03.040 --> 0:00:09.080 Episode three, The Sees Scandals, Sarah Stevenson's popularity was through 0:00:09.119 --> 0:00:12.920 the roof, fresh from activating hashtag milflife after the birth 0:00:12.920 --> 0:00:16.200 of her son Fox Ocean, Sarah had managed to sidestep 0:00:16.239 --> 0:00:20.239 Heer Sin three scandal, replacing controversy with baby Spam and 0:00:20.280 --> 0:00:23.440 their new house. Rnos and the masses were loving it. 0:00:24.000 --> 0:00:26.799 But no one could have predicted what twenty twenty would 0:00:26.840 --> 0:00:29.520 hold for Sarah's day, let alone the world. 0:00:29.960 --> 0:00:32.000 There are fears more than a thousand people could be 0:00:32.000 --> 0:00:35.479 infected with the deadly SARS like virus in China. The 0:00:35.600 --> 0:00:39.920 World Health Organization has declared coronavirus a global pandemic. 0:00:40.120 --> 0:00:43.120 The COVID nineteen pandemic changed life as we knew it. 0:00:43.520 --> 0:00:46.040 Locked inside our homes with more free time than ever, 0:00:46.400 --> 0:00:50.600 public sentiment towards influences began to change and cancel culture 0:00:50.640 --> 0:00:53.680 took hold. The same year, the Black Lives Matter movement 0:00:53.760 --> 0:00:56.760 shook the world, with protests breaking out across the globe 0:00:56.760 --> 0:00:58.720 following the murder of George Floyd. 0:00:59.160 --> 0:01:02.000 Cities across the United States remained in a state of 0:01:02.120 --> 0:01:05.559 high tension tonight, as the country braces itself for another 0:01:05.640 --> 0:01:08.400 wave of protests over the death of George Floyd. 0:01:09.000 --> 0:01:11.720 Twenty twenty was a horror year for everyone, but for 0:01:11.800 --> 0:01:14.759 Sarah it was the year she got canceled as three 0:01:14.800 --> 0:01:17.240 of her biggest controversies played out in front of a 0:01:17.240 --> 0:01:18.960 captive audience in Lockdown. 0:01:19.760 --> 0:01:22.560 We are journalist Amy Kay and Sophie Torbert and this 0:01:22.800 --> 0:01:26.920 is outspoken Plus in. 0:01:26.880 --> 0:01:28.240 Episode two, we Left You. 0:01:28.280 --> 0:01:32.720 In late twenty nineteen, in Australia, bushfires were ravishing the country. 0:01:33.040 --> 0:01:36.280 The new year brought further devastation as fires continued to 0:01:36.280 --> 0:01:37.480 burn out of control. 0:01:37.800 --> 0:01:41.080 New South Wales, Victoria and South Australia are waking up 0:01:41.080 --> 0:01:44.360 to widespread fire damage. We know properties have been lost, 0:01:44.400 --> 0:01:46.960 we know many towns are without power, but the true 0:01:47.000 --> 0:01:49.240 extent is being assessed right now. 0:01:49.480 --> 0:01:52.040 More than forty six million acres were burnt during the 0:01:52.040 --> 0:01:56.160 twenty nineteen and twenty twenty bushfires, and devastatingly, thirty four 0:01:56.200 --> 0:01:59.200 people were killed and nearly three billion animals. 0:01:58.720 --> 0:02:00.520 Lost their lives or were placed. 0:02:01.000 --> 0:02:03.560 All anyone could talk about was what could be done 0:02:03.600 --> 0:02:06.720 to help. Influencers and brands jumped on the cause and 0:02:06.760 --> 0:02:10.760 began sharing ways followers could help those impacted. I remember 0:02:10.800 --> 0:02:13.160 at the time Mitch Orville was getting a lot of 0:02:13.200 --> 0:02:15.919 attention because he managed to raise over two hundred and 0:02:16.000 --> 0:02:20.360 seventy thousand dollars alongside his brand Hooded Smile, and Sarah's 0:02:20.400 --> 0:02:23.280 Day was quick to follow this trend. In November, she 0:02:23.320 --> 0:02:26.000 announced that one dollar from each of her products sold 0:02:26.040 --> 0:02:28.760 on the Bang Body would go towards a Saint Vincent 0:02:28.800 --> 0:02:32.880 Bushfire appeal Now. To put that donation into perspective, Sarah's 0:02:32.960 --> 0:02:36.920 Lebang Body products ranged from sixty ninety five to fifty 0:02:36.919 --> 0:02:41.359 eight ninety five now. The backlash was swift. People labeled Sarah's. 0:02:41.040 --> 0:02:44.600 Promotion as an underwhelming offer of charity, while others said 0:02:44.639 --> 0:02:48.200 one dollar per product was a cop out. Another commenter wrote, 0:02:48.360 --> 0:02:50.880 go fifty percent or one hundred percent of proceeds for 0:02:50.880 --> 0:02:53.680 forty eight hours to be genuine. It's currently a cheap 0:02:53.720 --> 0:02:55.519 trick to boost profit now. 0:02:55.639 --> 0:02:58.560 Sarah jumped onto her stories on the afternoon of the 0:02:58.560 --> 0:03:02.240 fundraiser announcement, complaining that she couldn't train because she was 0:03:02.320 --> 0:03:03.840 receiving so much hate. 0:03:04.200 --> 0:03:05.040 Here's what she said. 0:03:05.840 --> 0:03:08.760 The amount of hate we just got is actually disgusting. 0:03:08.800 --> 0:03:10.799 Like we were trying to do something fun that was 0:03:10.840 --> 0:03:13.240 going to give back to everyone, and yeah, I'm really 0:03:13.240 --> 0:03:17.960 disappointed in like twenty percent of the people because this 0:03:18.120 --> 0:03:22.560 was coming from a really honest, authentic giving place, like 0:03:22.880 --> 0:03:28.120 bushfires is something really real and like personal in my family. 0:03:28.560 --> 0:03:31.280 And when Labang called me with the idea, I was like, Yeah, 0:03:31.360 --> 0:03:33.240 why would I say no? Like this is awesome. 0:03:34.280 --> 0:03:37.080 Sarah was late slam for her use of the word fun, 0:03:37.200 --> 0:03:41.000 which people found insensitive and said she didn't understand the issue. 0:03:41.320 --> 0:03:44.000 Sarah went on to say this this. 0:03:44.080 --> 0:03:46.480 Is a classic example of your damned if you do, 0:03:46.600 --> 0:03:49.080 you're damned if you don't. Like if I hadn't done 0:03:49.160 --> 0:03:52.360 anything with my products to support the Bushfire Foundation, I 0:03:52.400 --> 0:03:55.800 would have got hate. If I promote one hundred percent 0:03:55.840 --> 0:03:58.160 of the profits, I still get hate for promoting my products. 0:03:58.360 --> 0:04:01.480 We say a dollar activation, still get hate. 0:04:01.600 --> 0:04:05.160 The story made mainstream media and the campaign was stopped, 0:04:05.160 --> 0:04:09.480 with no party disclosing if the money raise was donated. Now, 0:04:09.520 --> 0:04:13.120 off the back of this initial failed campaign, Sarah launched 0:04:13.200 --> 0:04:15.680 a three day e book sale to raise money for 0:04:15.720 --> 0:04:17.320 bush fire relief charities. 0:04:17.680 --> 0:04:19.080 The three charities. 0:04:18.720 --> 0:04:22.640 Chosen were Food Bank Australia, New South Wales, Rural Fire Service, 0:04:22.920 --> 0:04:25.000 Port Macquarie, Kohala Hospital and. 0:04:24.880 --> 0:04:26.080 The Salvation Army. 0:04:26.480 --> 0:04:29.440 As part of the promotion, Sarah discounted her ebooks by 0:04:29.480 --> 0:04:32.000 twenty percent, and this time she said she would donate 0:04:32.120 --> 0:04:34.760 one hundred percent of the sales made to her four 0:04:34.880 --> 0:04:38.520 nominated charities. Now, Sarah announced that the sale raised a 0:04:38.520 --> 0:04:41.800 whopping three hundred and ninety one thousand, six hundred and 0:04:41.880 --> 0:04:44.880 sixty dollars, with the profits said to be split equally 0:04:45.000 --> 0:04:46.480 between the four charities. 0:04:46.839 --> 0:04:47.039 Now. 0:04:47.160 --> 0:04:49.920 Rather than being met with great fanfare like Mitch Aorble, 0:04:50.279 --> 0:04:53.400 Sarah's fans started getting agitated when she did not provide 0:04:53.440 --> 0:04:56.520 an update on the status of the donation. So six 0:04:56.600 --> 0:04:59.479 days after the sale ended, Sarah released a vlog where 0:04:59.480 --> 0:05:02.640 she briefly touched on the fundraiser. She explained that she 0:05:02.680 --> 0:05:04.839 had emailed the charities to let them know they would 0:05:04.880 --> 0:05:07.760 be receiving a huge donation and asked them how to 0:05:07.800 --> 0:05:11.280 go about transferring the money to them. Now despite confirming 0:05:11.360 --> 0:05:13.760 she was in talks with the four charities, a member 0:05:13.800 --> 0:05:17.080 of gossip forum Guru Gossip, she had an open letter 0:05:17.160 --> 0:05:19.800 to Sarah where they revealed they had reported her to 0:05:19.880 --> 0:05:23.640 scam Watch for not showing receipts of the donations she made. 0:05:23.760 --> 0:05:26.080 The user wrote, I believe you will donate and this 0:05:26.240 --> 0:05:28.640 was a genuine good deed you were doing. But this 0:05:28.800 --> 0:05:31.520 is just a gentle nudge in the right direction. It's 0:05:31.560 --> 0:05:34.039 too much money and too important a cause for you 0:05:34.120 --> 0:05:37.080 not to have posted an update yet, especially when other 0:05:37.160 --> 0:05:40.599 influencers have now. This letter spurred on others to start 0:05:40.640 --> 0:05:44.640 contacting the Australian media publications who had covered the initial 0:05:44.720 --> 0:05:47.320 story about the one dollar bushfire appeal. 0:05:47.839 --> 0:05:50.800 It's safe to say by now the pressure was mounting 0:05:50.839 --> 0:05:53.920 on Sarah. People were beginning to lash out on Instagram, 0:05:53.920 --> 0:05:57.680 with many comments getting swiftly deleted. This stress led to 0:05:57.720 --> 0:06:00.880 Sarah having a complete meltdown in her outside of a 0:06:00.960 --> 0:06:04.560 bank ten days after the fundraiser had ended. So the 0:06:04.680 --> 0:06:07.400 day prior, she had updated her followers saying that she 0:06:07.480 --> 0:06:10.600 was unable to donate to the Koala Hospital because her 0:06:10.640 --> 0:06:13.400 bank wouldn't allow her to make a transaction that big. 0:06:13.839 --> 0:06:16.640 So the following day, Sarah complained the bank had only 0:06:16.720 --> 0:06:19.320 let her transfer money to two of the four charities 0:06:19.600 --> 0:06:21.800 because of the transfer limit, and that she would need 0:06:21.839 --> 0:06:24.480 to come back the next day. It's important to note 0:06:24.520 --> 0:06:26.839 that Sarah did visit the bank at four pm when 0:06:26.839 --> 0:06:29.440 it was closing. She said I'm just trying to do 0:06:29.520 --> 0:06:31.680 this nice thing and donate all this money for my 0:06:31.720 --> 0:06:34.520 country and the animals. Sarah went on to complain that 0:06:34.560 --> 0:06:36.880 she'd been trying to pay everyone for over a week, 0:06:36.960 --> 0:06:39.480 but none of the charities were accepting the bank transfers 0:06:39.480 --> 0:06:41.960 because the daily limit on her account was one hundred 0:06:42.040 --> 0:06:45.479 thousand dollars. Now, when you consider that Sarah was trying 0:06:45.520 --> 0:06:49.640 to transfer each charity around eighty nine thousand dollars, wouldn't 0:06:49.680 --> 0:06:52.440 have only taken her four days to finalize these transfers. 0:06:52.600 --> 0:06:52.840 Yeah. 0:06:52.880 --> 0:06:55.520 I think the fact that she was complaining and putting 0:06:55.560 --> 0:06:58.520 a lot of the blame on the charities really caused 0:06:58.520 --> 0:07:01.120 a sour taste in people's mind. I mean, obviously it 0:07:01.160 --> 0:07:03.400 sounds like it was a bit of a complex process 0:07:03.480 --> 0:07:07.000 to do, but I think, don't share the struggles. 0:07:06.440 --> 0:07:09.040 That you're having with online. Yeah. 0:07:09.080 --> 0:07:12.080 So, on the twenty second of January, five days after 0:07:12.200 --> 0:07:15.320 Sarah's meltdown at the bank, Sarah confirmed that all four 0:07:15.440 --> 0:07:19.360 charities had received their donations. Sarah shared a screenshot of 0:07:19.400 --> 0:07:23.880 handwritten calculations and wrote, all charities have received their donations? 0:07:24.160 --> 0:07:26.800 Were who When I contacted the charities to let them 0:07:26.800 --> 0:07:29.640 know they'd be getting eighty nine thousand, thirteen dollars and 0:07:29.720 --> 0:07:33.320 seventy five cents. They were absolutely overwhelmed and so grateful. 0:07:33.680 --> 0:07:37.520 Originally some people were complaining that the sum Sarah provided 0:07:37.640 --> 0:07:40.640 didn't add up, but they were forgetting about the GST. 0:07:40.800 --> 0:07:43.239 So it's important to note that according to a chartered 0:07:43.280 --> 0:07:46.880 tax accountant, Sarah did everything completely within the rules of 0:07:46.920 --> 0:07:49.080 the tax legislation in Australia. 0:07:49.120 --> 0:07:50.760 It's very likely that she would. 0:07:50.600 --> 0:07:53.920 Have an accountant providing advice on how to maximize their 0:07:53.960 --> 0:07:56.800 profit and cash. So in this case, what people appeared 0:07:56.800 --> 0:07:59.120 to have an issue with is with Sarah promoting that 0:07:59.160 --> 0:08:02.120 she would donate one hundred percent of sales rather than 0:08:02.160 --> 0:08:04.840 saying one hundred percent of profits. I mean, I think 0:08:04.880 --> 0:08:06.520 it's a bit tit for tat at this stage. 0:08:06.760 --> 0:08:08.960 Yeah, in this instance, I do feel like people were 0:08:09.080 --> 0:08:11.480 very harsh on Sarah, considering that she did raise such 0:08:11.520 --> 0:08:14.440 a huge amount of money for charity. I do think 0:08:14.480 --> 0:08:17.320 people are forgetting that there were so many celebrities and 0:08:17.400 --> 0:08:20.920 influencers jumping in and trying to raise money without actually 0:08:21.000 --> 0:08:23.360 thinking through the process of how they would end up 0:08:23.520 --> 0:08:26.480 transferring such a huge amount of money to a charity. 0:08:26.640 --> 0:08:27.640 I think if this was a. 0:08:27.600 --> 0:08:30.000 Campaign that she had set up with a lot of 0:08:30.120 --> 0:08:33.000 preparation time, it would have been fair to sort of 0:08:33.120 --> 0:08:35.920 launch this criticism at her, But considering it was something 0:08:35.960 --> 0:08:38.360 done on the fly, I do think it was a 0:08:38.400 --> 0:08:39.240 little bit unfair. 0:08:39.400 --> 0:08:41.480 I think it is really interesting to look back at 0:08:41.480 --> 0:08:44.160 this scandal three years on when you're removed from the 0:08:44.280 --> 0:08:48.160 emotions of the situation. So in times of crisis, when 0:08:48.160 --> 0:08:51.160 people feel out of control, generally they do look for 0:08:51.240 --> 0:08:54.600 someone to blame, and at the time, influencers around Australia 0:08:54.679 --> 0:08:57.800 really were being put under the microscope by sections of 0:08:57.840 --> 0:09:00.640 the Internet who were trying to determine whether or not 0:09:00.840 --> 0:09:03.760 influencers were trying to help out out of the goodness 0:09:03.800 --> 0:09:06.679 of their hearts, or whether they saw this situation as 0:09:06.720 --> 0:09:10.760 an opportunity for self promotion and being charitable at the 0:09:10.840 --> 0:09:12.640 end of the day is good for your brand, but 0:09:12.720 --> 0:09:15.240 it's also something I would like to think that a 0:09:15.280 --> 0:09:17.760 lot of people genuinely do to help out and make 0:09:17.800 --> 0:09:21.360 a difference. And I personally felt uncomfortable by the backlash 0:09:21.400 --> 0:09:23.920 that was thrown at Sarah during this time because, as 0:09:23.960 --> 0:09:26.160 you say, Kate, she did use her platform to raise 0:09:26.200 --> 0:09:29.559 over three hundred thousand dollars for animals and communities in need. 0:09:29.840 --> 0:09:32.040 And I'm sure if she didn't use her platform, she 0:09:32.040 --> 0:09:34.320 would have copt the same amount of flack and abuse. 0:09:34.720 --> 0:09:36.440 And it sort of was a situation at the time 0:09:36.480 --> 0:09:38.480 you're either damned if you do damned if you don't. 0:09:38.640 --> 0:09:40.719 Yeah, I actually remember she did say that. And it's 0:09:40.760 --> 0:09:43.960 important to remember that whilst influencers may come across as 0:09:44.000 --> 0:09:47.480 these huge entities, most of the time they are individuals 0:09:47.600 --> 0:09:50.480 running startups which don't have the support of a professional 0:09:50.559 --> 0:09:53.839 team or strategists or lawyers behind them helping them make 0:09:53.880 --> 0:09:56.480 these big business decisions. And I think there's a lot 0:09:56.520 --> 0:09:58.520 of talk about how Sarah is in a bit of 0:09:58.559 --> 0:10:01.720 a cronulla bubble, and I don't think equips herself with 0:10:01.800 --> 0:10:05.600 the right team. She often employs friends or relatives, and 0:10:05.640 --> 0:10:08.199 I think this is a situation where perhaps she didn't 0:10:08.200 --> 0:10:09.720 have the right guidance in place. 0:10:10.040 --> 0:10:10.240 Yeah. 0:10:10.240 --> 0:10:12.720 And in terms of the criticism about her not donating 0:10:12.760 --> 0:10:14.839 the money quick enough, I think over time it has 0:10:14.880 --> 0:10:18.400 become quite evident that donating large sums of money isn't 0:10:18.440 --> 0:10:21.120 as easy as it looks. And this was the case 0:10:21.120 --> 0:10:24.720 for Australian comedian Celeste Barber, who raised fifty one point 0:10:24.800 --> 0:10:28.520 three million dollars in a record breaking Facebook fundraiser for 0:10:28.559 --> 0:10:32.320 the New South Wales Rural Fire Service and brigades donation funds. 0:10:32.360 --> 0:10:35.560 So Celess said that as donations grew and grew, she 0:10:35.679 --> 0:10:38.840 attracted a fuck ton of people telling her what she 0:10:38.920 --> 0:10:42.000 should do with it. And things got really complicated when 0:10:42.040 --> 0:10:45.040 the deed which governed the New South Wales Rural Fire 0:10:45.120 --> 0:10:49.120 Service Trust outlined that money donated could only be spent 0:10:49.200 --> 0:10:54.000 on purchasing and maintaining equipment, training and administration cost So 0:10:54.120 --> 0:10:57.280 this meant that the money wasn't really allowed to go 0:10:57.520 --> 0:11:00.320 directly to those who had been impacted by the fire. 0:11:00.679 --> 0:11:03.080 And I'm sure Celeste never imagined that she would have 0:11:03.240 --> 0:11:06.400 raised that amount of money, and I'm assuming donors would 0:11:06.400 --> 0:11:08.800 have thought that she would have the ability to allocate 0:11:08.840 --> 0:11:12.599 funds to other bushfire charities if necessary. Now there was 0:11:12.640 --> 0:11:14.920 a court case and the court ruled that money could 0:11:14.920 --> 0:11:17.760 be given to the families of Fullen firefighters and used 0:11:17.800 --> 0:11:20.720 for trauma counseling, but could not be given to charities 0:11:20.760 --> 0:11:23.600 like the Australian Red Cross or animal welfare groups, which 0:11:23.640 --> 0:11:28.040 upset many of those who donated their money. One month later, 0:11:28.200 --> 0:11:32.360 Sarah's bushfire fundraiser controversy was all but forgotten as the 0:11:32.400 --> 0:11:34.520 COVID pandemic took over our lives. 0:11:34.720 --> 0:11:39.280 The World Health Organization has declared coronavirus a global pandemic. 0:11:39.720 --> 0:11:42.200 As our lives ascended into the unknown. With stay at 0:11:42.200 --> 0:11:45.800 home orders and five kilometer radius parameters in place, we 0:11:45.880 --> 0:11:50.160 became increasingly infuriated by anyone breaking the rules or those 0:11:50.200 --> 0:11:53.880 in positions of privilege complaining about being confined to their mansions. 0:11:54.360 --> 0:11:56.240 Influencer behavior became a. 0:11:56.120 --> 0:11:57.360 Major talking point. 0:11:57.720 --> 0:12:00.800 We were beginning to question whether influencers were doing enough 0:12:00.840 --> 0:12:03.000 to deserve the privileges bestowed. 0:12:02.600 --> 0:12:03.760 Upon them now. 0:12:03.800 --> 0:12:06.760 On the twenty fifth of May twenty twenty, George Floyd, 0:12:06.800 --> 0:12:09.840 a black man living in Minneapolis, was murdered by police 0:12:09.840 --> 0:12:13.800 officer Derek Sharvin. After being handcuffed and pinned to the ground, 0:12:14.120 --> 0:12:17.200 Floyd repeatedly told the police officer he could not breathe 0:12:17.240 --> 0:12:20.160 as the officer knelt on his neck. The horrific event 0:12:20.240 --> 0:12:27.880 was captured on camera, sparking protests around the world. 0:12:27.960 --> 0:12:32.120 Chaos, violence, fire, and looty unfolding on the streets of Minneapolis. 0:12:32.440 --> 0:12:35.480 Black matters were at the forefront of the public psyche. 0:12:35.559 --> 0:12:38.440 We were just two months into the pandemic and tensions 0:12:38.440 --> 0:12:41.800 were boiling over. Social media was a wash with support 0:12:41.840 --> 0:12:44.560 for the Black Lives Matter movement, with black tile shared 0:12:44.600 --> 0:12:47.840 on June second, twenty twenty to show solidarity for the 0:12:47.880 --> 0:12:50.160 protests and riots happening in the US. 0:12:50.840 --> 0:12:54.160 Meanwhile, back in Cronulla, Sarah was getting set to launch 0:12:54.160 --> 0:12:58.080 her third active web collaboration with White Fox Boutique. The 0:12:58.160 --> 0:13:01.320 campaign was called Reboot and was based around the idea 0:13:01.400 --> 0:13:05.160 that her line was being elevated. Sarah took followers along 0:13:05.200 --> 0:13:07.920 for the ride, capturing behind the scenes footage of her 0:13:07.960 --> 0:13:12.640 campaign shoot. Followers were left astounded when Sarah revealed how 0:13:12.679 --> 0:13:17.040 she had been styled. She was unrecognizable. Her short blonde 0:13:17.040 --> 0:13:20.480 hair had been woven into thick fluot braids, and she 0:13:20.600 --> 0:13:23.280 was quickly accused of cultural appropriation. 0:13:24.000 --> 0:13:27.360 Now, for those who are unsure, cultural appropriation occurs when 0:13:27.400 --> 0:13:30.520 members of a majority group adopt cultural elements of a 0:13:30.559 --> 0:13:35.600 minority group in an exploitative, disrespectful, stereotypical way. This can 0:13:35.640 --> 0:13:39.480 include a hairstyle, piece of clothing, and a manner of speaking. Now, 0:13:39.520 --> 0:13:42.400 to put all of this into context. Just three days 0:13:42.440 --> 0:13:45.280 after the murder of George Floyd, Sarah's Day was forced 0:13:45.320 --> 0:13:49.240 to pull her new reboot activewear campaign. She did decide 0:13:49.240 --> 0:13:52.080 to reshoot the campaign with a different look a couple 0:13:52.080 --> 0:13:55.240 of days later. Now, I remember the moment I saw 0:13:55.320 --> 0:13:59.840 Sarah's hairstyle on Instagram. I instantly screenshot it and sent 0:14:00.040 --> 0:14:02.720 it to you, because I couldn't believe that she didn't 0:14:02.720 --> 0:14:05.720 foresee that this would be a problem, especially considering what 0:14:05.880 --> 0:14:06.880 was going on in the world. 0:14:06.960 --> 0:14:08.480 It was just so tone deaf. 0:14:08.760 --> 0:14:11.120 Yeah, the fact that Sarah's Day, as well as the 0:14:11.200 --> 0:14:15.120 White Fox boutique team thought that this was acceptable really 0:14:15.160 --> 0:14:15.640 shocked me. 0:14:15.679 --> 0:14:17.640 How did no one flag this with her? 0:14:17.960 --> 0:14:21.200 Oh? I mean, the hairstyle was just highly inappropriate. West 0:14:21.240 --> 0:14:24.320 African woman Safie, who chose not to give her last name, 0:14:24.680 --> 0:14:27.880 gave some really insightful comments to news dot Com about 0:14:27.920 --> 0:14:30.479 the incident because at the time, there seemed. 0:14:30.240 --> 0:14:31.400 To be a real divide. 0:14:31.400 --> 0:14:34.200 There were those who were deeply offended and then those 0:14:34.240 --> 0:14:38.440 who didn't understand the gravity of the situation. So Safie said, 0:14:38.440 --> 0:14:42.360 for her, it came down to differentiating cultural appropriation and 0:14:42.440 --> 0:14:47.040 cultural appreciation. She said, sadly, so many people can't tell 0:14:47.080 --> 0:14:49.880 the difference. She explained that what Sarah did was take 0:14:49.920 --> 0:14:53.560 this hairstyle, capitalize on her refer to it as ghetto, 0:14:54.000 --> 0:14:57.160 a neglect to pay proper homage or acknowledge that she 0:14:57.240 --> 0:15:01.040 was inspired by women of color. She continued to quite simply, 0:15:01.120 --> 0:15:03.800 she used a significant part of our culture to make 0:15:03.880 --> 0:15:06.320 money off it. This is what so many black women 0:15:06.360 --> 0:15:10.160 of color, like myself class as cultural appropriation. Had she 0:15:10.280 --> 0:15:14.160 done her research and understood the cultural significance of this hairstyle, 0:15:14.240 --> 0:15:17.760 it would be considered cultural appreciation, but she didn't. 0:15:17.920 --> 0:15:21.840 Now Following the backlash online, Sarah released a three hundred 0:15:21.840 --> 0:15:25.520 and eighty word apology on her Instagram feed alongside a 0:15:25.560 --> 0:15:29.520 series of Instagram stories to her one point one million followers. 0:15:29.920 --> 0:15:34.160 Sarah apologized for the hairstyle, causing any offense, and explained 0:15:34.160 --> 0:15:37.240 why she made the decision to wear braids. She basically 0:15:37.280 --> 0:15:39.800 said it was her idea to wear braids because she 0:15:39.880 --> 0:15:43.640 always wears them and wanted to incorporate Coachella and festival 0:15:43.720 --> 0:15:45.120 vibes into the campaign. 0:15:45.720 --> 0:15:46.640 Let's throw to what she. 0:15:46.640 --> 0:15:49.760 Said, so specifically, we need to talk about the braids 0:15:49.800 --> 0:15:53.359 because this is where the controversy comes and the accusations 0:15:53.400 --> 0:15:57.080 and issue of cultural appropriation. So in the first and 0:15:57.320 --> 0:15:59.640 in no way I've said this in the caption, I'm 0:15:59.680 --> 0:16:03.240 not made excuses or trying to justify. I'm literally just 0:16:03.280 --> 0:16:06.400 trying to give reasoning because everyone's asking me questions, like 0:16:06.720 --> 0:16:09.640 even if they're mean questions, Everyone's like, why the f 0:16:09.720 --> 0:16:11.840 do you think it's okay to wear braids? Like this 0:16:11.920 --> 0:16:13.400 is me answering, This is me answering. 0:16:13.480 --> 0:16:15.800 Yeah, this is a very serious topic and like for 0:16:15.880 --> 0:16:17.960 us to be put in this category, it's very scary 0:16:17.960 --> 0:16:19.960 for us because this is the complete opposite of what 0:16:20.000 --> 0:16:20.440 we're about. 0:16:20.560 --> 0:16:24.680 Yeah, I'm I'm like the last person to judge anyone 0:16:24.880 --> 0:16:30.760 or to try to be controversial or cultural appropriate, Like 0:16:30.840 --> 0:16:33.760 I just want everyone to be happier. What everyone anyway, 0:16:33.840 --> 0:16:38.360 I'm derailing. So I was the one who first came 0:16:38.440 --> 0:16:41.560 up with the braid idea, and I showed I make 0:16:41.640 --> 0:16:43.800 a mood board for everything. I made a Pinterest with 0:16:43.880 --> 0:16:47.120 like mostly Coachella stuff. It was like these big braids 0:16:47.120 --> 0:16:48.880 and they were pink and it was fun, and so 0:16:49.120 --> 0:16:50.920 most of the pictures that I showed everyone were like 0:16:50.960 --> 0:16:52.120 Coachella festival. 0:16:52.160 --> 0:16:52.960 It was really fun. 0:16:54.040 --> 0:16:54.760 Yeah, So that was the pin. 0:16:54.920 --> 0:16:56.840 I had that like electric feel that was tied in 0:16:56.960 --> 0:16:59.360 nicely to the whole idea of this campaign that we 0:16:59.480 --> 0:17:01.160 sort of up with in the first place. 0:17:01.360 --> 0:17:03.600 And that's the thing. I don't know if I'm just 0:17:03.720 --> 0:17:05.480 like not educated. 0:17:05.040 --> 0:17:07.880 In this or it's like I don't know, because not. 0:17:07.920 --> 0:17:10.760 Once did I even think about cultural appropriation. If that 0:17:10.880 --> 0:17:13.160 even crossed my mind, I wouldn't have done it, because 0:17:13.200 --> 0:17:15.480 you guys know, I hate conflict, I hate controversy. I 0:17:15.480 --> 0:17:18.240 don't want to offend anyone. If I thought it would 0:17:18.280 --> 0:17:21.080 offend anyone, I would have never, ever, ever, ever done it. 0:17:21.480 --> 0:17:24.600 So again not making excuses, but you guys know, I 0:17:24.600 --> 0:17:27.639 always wear two braids. Even when I had long blonde extensions, 0:17:27.680 --> 0:17:30.600 I got my hair braided, and even now I'm not 0:17:30.640 --> 0:17:33.240 gonna lie even doing Yeah, I'd be lying if I 0:17:33.280 --> 0:17:37.080 said I completely understood what's okay and what's not okay, 0:17:37.160 --> 0:17:42.000 Because even after researching so much, asking people, asking my friends, 0:17:42.000 --> 0:17:45.760 of all different cultural backgrounds, of all different races, everyone 0:17:45.840 --> 0:17:48.760 has a different opinion, everyone has a different It's a. 0:17:48.800 --> 0:17:51.280 Very fine line. So I don't know. 0:17:51.480 --> 0:17:53.680 So I don't know what's offensive. I don't know what 0:17:53.840 --> 0:17:56.080 is cultural. I don't know, so That's why I'm like, 0:17:56.080 --> 0:17:57.200 you know what, we had a call. 0:17:57.080 --> 0:17:58.679 With White Fox. White Fox. 0:17:59.080 --> 0:18:02.000 They don't want to offend anyone, Like the whole team 0:18:02.040 --> 0:18:04.680 who worked on this campaign are heartbroken. That would put us. 0:18:04.800 --> 0:18:06.879 We worked on it for like three months or so 0:18:07.040 --> 0:18:10.679 in the making, and now read for everyone, it's okay. 0:18:11.520 --> 0:18:15.040 Initially, many people took Sarah's apology on face value and 0:18:15.119 --> 0:18:18.840 accepted that she was ignorant and uneducated. It is important 0:18:18.840 --> 0:18:21.479 to note, however, that the apology was not directed at 0:18:21.520 --> 0:18:24.359 white people, but at people of color. Therefore, it's not 0:18:24.480 --> 0:18:28.240 up to us to accept the apology. Opinions started shifting though, 0:18:28.280 --> 0:18:31.400 when it appeared Sarah wasn't as remorseful as she had 0:18:31.400 --> 0:18:34.879 made out originally. Firstly, both Sarah and Kirk kept the 0:18:34.920 --> 0:18:38.639 sneak peak of the campaign up despite deciding to pull it. 0:18:38.920 --> 0:18:42.320 The video included Sarah wearing the braids the evening of 0:18:42.320 --> 0:18:43.040 her apology. 0:18:43.200 --> 0:18:45.120 Sarah was also very passive. 0:18:44.840 --> 0:18:48.600 Aggressive on her Instagram story about having to reshoot the campaign. 0:18:48.920 --> 0:18:51.360 Now it was very clear she was feeling sorry for herself. 0:18:51.359 --> 0:18:53.720 She made a snide comment about it apparently being a 0:18:53.760 --> 0:18:57.520 tough day for everyone, not just her, to make matters worse, 0:18:57.720 --> 0:19:01.120 a screenshot from Sarah's Day's Facebook came unity surfaced where 0:19:01.119 --> 0:19:04.840 she was warned of the cultural appropriation weeks before when 0:19:04.840 --> 0:19:08.400 she first posted about the campaign to her story. However, 0:19:08.480 --> 0:19:11.800 at the time, the post was deleted and deemed as trolling. 0:19:12.200 --> 0:19:16.240 Sarah's apology post was also highly moderated. It only had 0:19:16.320 --> 0:19:20.040 messages of support. The original comments calling out the hairstyle 0:19:20.119 --> 0:19:25.680 as cultural appropriation were also deleted, despite it being an educational, 0:19:25.800 --> 0:19:29.639 well balanced discussion. Now, White Fox Boutique did not comment 0:19:29.720 --> 0:19:33.720 on the controversy or issue an apology for their involvement, 0:19:34.000 --> 0:19:37.359 and I thought this was really poor because it wasn't 0:19:37.440 --> 0:19:41.119 solely Sarah's decision to launch the campaign, yet she was 0:19:41.200 --> 0:19:42.520 the only one who. 0:19:42.400 --> 0:19:45.720 Faced up and apologized to it. Yes, the apology was 0:19:45.760 --> 0:19:48.320 not fantastic and it did not seem genuine, But I 0:19:48.400 --> 0:19:51.560 find it really strange that White Fox Boutique, which is 0:19:51.600 --> 0:19:54.920 a large brand, didn't come out and give a statement 0:19:54.960 --> 0:19:57.520 and apologize because they at the end of the day, 0:19:57.880 --> 0:20:00.200 they gave the all clear for this. This was their 0:20:00.280 --> 0:20:01.879 brand putting out the activewear. 0:20:02.359 --> 0:20:05.000 Yeah, they were collaborating with Sarah's Day on the project. 0:20:05.000 --> 0:20:06.879 You think they'd have a say in the campaign. 0:20:07.280 --> 0:20:10.120 They really seemed to hang her out to dry, which 0:20:10.160 --> 0:20:12.560 is really confusing because they still do use her as 0:20:12.600 --> 0:20:14.320