A group of leading UK supermarkets have joined together to take a stand against a racist online backlash that followed Sainsbury’s Christmas advertisement featuring a black family. Aldi, Asda, Co-op, Iceland, Lidl, Marks & Spencer, Sainsbury’s, Tesco and Waitrose ran their adverts back-to-back during two primetime slots on Channel 4 on Friday evening, with the hashtag #StandAgainstRacism. A Channel 4 announcement introduced the ad break, saying: “Channel 4 stands up against racism. After the reaction to this year’s Sainsbury’s Christmas commercial, retailers have put their usual festive rivalries aside across two adbreaks tonight to stand side-by-side with us too.”The full version of the Sainsbury’s advert, which was met with racist abuse on social media when it aired earlier this month, was also broadcast. Rachel Eyre, the head of brand communications and creative at Sainsbury’s, said: “We strive to be an inclusive retailer and we’re proud to unite with our industry colleagues to stand up against racism.

Source: The Guardian November 28, 2020 16:59 UTC