We live in a time when ads and other forms of advertising are changing to reflect society as a whole.
In recent years, we’ve seen fashion brands support older models, plus-size models, and models with disabilities. They’ve also been slowing down on retouching photos.
Despite this, there is still a long way to go.
When a caring mother sent pictures of her son to Oshkosh B’Gosh, the company didn’t want to use him as a model at all.
What’s up? He was born with Down syndrome.
The US state of Georgia is where Meagan Nash and her family live.
When children’s clothing company Oshkosh B’Gosh said they were looking for models, Meagan was excited and sent photos of her 15-month-old son, Asher.
The child was exactly what the company needed. He was the right height, and the color of his hair and eyes were also right.
But Meagan didn’t hear anything back after she sent pictures of her son.
When Meagan called the company, they told her they didn’t want to use Asher in their upcoming campaign because they didn’t want “a baby with special needs.”
“Did they say that they wouldn’t hire a child with special needs?” The Independent says that the mother hit back.
Meagan was very angry and upset.
She could understand that not every child gets the chance to be a model, but to turn down her son just because he has an extra chromosome?
Meagan wished the company had given it more thought and seen how much Asher could have helped them. She decided to do something because she was mad.
She put pictures of her son Asher in the “Kids with Down’s syndrome” Facebook group.
Asher’s pictures taken by Crystal Barbee while he was wearing a blue denim shirt and bow tie were an instant hit.
Meagan sent the company that turned down her son the following letter:
“Let’s make a difference—share so they can see Asher!
“This handsome boy is ready to show everyone what Changing the Face of Beauty is all about.”
At the time this was written, over 100,000 people had liked Asher’s photos on Facebook.
“We are working with the Changing the Face of Beauty organization and trying to get Oshkosh to use him in their ads,” Meagan wrote in the post, emphasizing that her son had been turned down by an agency, not the clothing company.