Tampax accused of ‘sexualizing women’ after controversial tweet goes viral | UK News



Tampax is facing a potential boycott after being accused of “sexualizing women” in a controversial tweet that went viral.

In a spinoff of a popular internet meme, the US branch of the tampon brand wrote, “You are in their DMs. We are in them. We are not the same.”

The meme features the lines “you’re in their DMs,” which means talking to someone online romantically, followed by the line, “I’m…,” usually ending in a self-aggrandizing comparison.

Simply put, it means you have something, but I have something better.

It first became popular on Twitter in 2019, but started seeing a resurgence last year after someone made an example of it showing Breaking Bad actor Giancarlo Esposito.

The Tampax tweet was shared more than 46,000 times and liked by more than 360,000 accounts.

It didn’t go over well for users, and fuel was thrown on the fire when Tampax posted a second message saying, “Refused to shut down Twitter before sharing this tweet.”

This was referring to rumors that Twitter may collapse due to Elon Musk’s recent takeover of the site, which has seen controversial figures such as Donald Trump And Kanye West returns to the platform.

‘Creepy’, ‘offensive’ and ‘really weird’

By Wednesday morning, the hashtag #BoycottTampax was trending, with thousands of people asking those with periods to stop buying the company’s products.

Many took to pointing out that nine-year-olds can get their periods, saying the tweet was “creepy,” while others took aim at the company for “alienating” their customer base by not directly referring to women and using gender inclusive pronouns.

One user wrote: “This is a revolting statement. You [Tampax] are supplier/manufacturer of a useful product used for menstrual care of women and girls.

“The fact that you can even frame this as being into us is just an insult. Feel ashamed and show some respect to the women and girls who are your customers.”

Another added, “Very strange for a company that sells products made for woman’s natural bodily functions to make a tweet that sexualizes women for using their products…. lmfao fire your social media manager, this is disgusting”.

“We do not exist as sexual receptacles”

One woman spoke about using a tampon for the first time at the age of nine and said knowing that the company that made them would “sexualize” her would have made the experience “much worse”.

“We don’t exist as sexual receptacles for men,” she added.

One user wrote, “That’s a disgusting thing to say. Do you really think alienating your customer base is a good business plan?”

While many reacted to the branding, some rushed to its defense, describing the tweet as “hilarious” and urging people to “take no offense at everything.”

Tampax US, which is owned by the Procter and Gamble company, has filed several campaigns calling for the normalization of conversations about periods.

Sky News has contacted Procter and Gamble for comment.

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