A Message To Gillette On Their Ill-Advised We Believe Campaign

Gillette recently released a new campaign titled "We Believe: The Best Men Can Be" and it's an insulting, broad stroke misrepresentation of men that completely misses the mark.

As you can see in the video below, the campaign is designed to encourage men to be their best in the era of the #MeToo movement.

The first 40 seconds of the long-form video shows men as a whole as a bunch of immature, sexist pigs. Then, Gillette concedes that some men are already acting in a respectful, mature way towards women and, in a nutshell, they believe that more men should put down their caveman clubs and act with civility and honor.

I don't have an issue with encouraging all people to act with civility towards one another. I'm disgusted by the actions of the likes of Harvey Weinstein, Bill Cosby, and any person who fails to exhibit basic respect for another person regardless of sex, race, sexual orientation or anything that makes us who we are.

What Gillette apparently fails to realize is that there are a lot more men who feel the way that I do than there are who spend their days sexually harassing women and living with a "boys will be boys" mentality. Gillette has decided to do what too many within media do today by creating a campaign that leads with negativity and sensationalism while using the worst male stereotypes.

Men do not need to be taught a lesson from the Gillette ad agency. Men, as a whole, are not evil sheep. Most men live their lives the right way, loving their families and doing their best to help provide for them. Most men wouldn't blink an eye to stand up for someone being mistreated or disrespected. Most men are positive role models for their children. It's not "some men" living their lives this way, as Gillette implies.

Gillette used negativity, sensationalism and stereotypes for one reason: to get attention. It's a cheap, unfortunate way to get it, but I guess they accomplished their mission. They may have lost a lot of respect from most men by doing so in such a manner, however, but it's not too late to make amends.

Why not get off your soap box? Stop leading with negativity and male stereotypes and celebrate who most men are and the way most Americans live their daily lives.

Gillette, why not make an ad campaign filled with positive images (men being positive role models as fathers, soldiers, husbands, etc) that says "We live in a world where negativity and fear dominate our headlines, but we know that's not who America is. We are a country full of people who everyday live their lives the right way: for their families, for their friends, for one another. At Gillette, we salute the good in America, the good in mankind. Gillette: The Best, For When You're At Your Best."

Simply put, you can stop being a part of the problem and do better.