Calvin students successfully protest American Apparel

By: American Decency Staff

One of the tough things about having the passion about decency that this organization has is that there is always the question of does anyone else really care or will our cause follow us to the grave? A local story here in the Grand Rapids area gives us some hope. Calvin College, a Christian college affiliated with the Christian Reformed denomination, has been one of the most popular educational destinations for Christian high school graduates in West Michigan – our local area which has deep roots in the Reformed/Christian Reformed tradition. Recently, one Calvin student came across a disturbing discovery.  Abbie Belford explains in her email to Calvin’s student organizations. “I was casually talking with some friends this past week who are part of a student organization that is planning on buying t-shirts from American Apparel.  I immediately applauded them for choosing to go with the fair trade option. Then that they told me "don't ever go to American Apparel's website, though…it's almost pornographic." That sentence surprised me. I had to check out their website for myself to see, since I own several American Apparel t-shirts that Calvin has purchased, and since I recently had a friend at Calvin admit to me that he was addicted to porn while at Calvin. What I found on their website troubled me. Someone looking at the website's main page to navigate to their t-shirt section is subjected to viewing see-through clothing on sexually posed models and women lying on beds in nothing more than lacy bras and thongs.â€Â Abbie and her friend Hannah Whyte have started a petition to let American Apparel know that the signers will not buy AA clothing until they clean up their advertising. They are urging the other student organizations to sign on to their campaign. Their Facebook Group Description says this: “The body of a woman is a beautiful thing, but American Apparel is degrading women to the value of an object—a sex toy—with their provocative advertisements. We don’t believe that Calvin should support a company which uses sex to sell their merchandise.â€Â Calvin College apparently agrees. According to WZZM 13, “[Calvin] says it will support the student-led effort and will likely choose another company next year.â€Â It is truly encouraging to see college students stepping up to the plate on issues of decency! And they are making a difference! American Apparel as yet is not changing its stance on advertising, but at least the money of one Christian college will not go to support the degradation of our society through this company. Encourage Calvin College to change companies and thank them for supporting the student-led effort: Calvin College Gaylen J. Byker, president3201 Burton SE Grand Rapids, MI 49546 Phone:  (616) 526-6000 Toll-free:  1-800-688-0122 Email:   info@calvin.edu =============================================== Your support is important to our ability to make a difference: donate online at: https://secure4.afo.net/ada/donate.php American Decency Association Bill Johnson, President P.O. Box 202 Fremont, MI 49412 ph: 231-924-4050 www.americandecency.org http://www.twitter.com/billwjohnson ===================================

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