Transgender rights groups in Thailand
are protesting the characterization of a transgender woman in an IKEA
ad.
The 20-second ad, shown on YouTube.com
and on Bangkok's trains, features a transgender woman whose voice
becomes suddenly deep when she sees a sale sign. When the woman
begins to tote packages of furniture on her own, her male friend scurries
away scared. (The video is embedded on this page. Visit
our video library for more videos.)
The ad is titled Forget to Keep
Hidden (Luem Aeb).
The group Thai Transgender Alliance
complained about the ad in a January 9 letter to the Swedish retail
giant, Reuters
reported.
“The MTF transgender/transwoman
character is openly mocked as being 'deceitful,'” the
group wrote. “The transgender content of the advertisement is
negative and stereotypical in nature, perpetuating misunderstanding
transgenderism as human sexuality for 'deceitful and deviant
lifestyle.'”
“Ikea has spoken to the group over
the telephone and the conversation went very smoothly,” a marketing
official at IKEA Thailand said. “We are now drafting a letter in
response.”