(TW: sexual assault, rape culture)
In this case activism led to a major change â and it started with two girls and a black tape roll.
Year after year I have the time of my life during the 5 days of Carnival: the most famous Brazilian festivity gathers millions of people, wearing the funniest costumes you can imagine in the streets of Rio, SĂŁo Paulo, Recife, Salvador and hundreds of other cities. Weâre all guardians of the golden rule: dance like thereâs no tomorrow! Unfortunately, this very same mood that makes it so incredibly fun sometimes puts women and girls at risk.
Crowds in the street and high amounts of alcohol translate every year into peaks in cases of street harassment and assault, showing how strong is the misconception that the mere presence of women in street Carnival is in itself a form of consent.
The advertising industry doesnât help. If using the female body to sell is a worldwide cliche, Brazilian Carnival takes the trend to a whole new level. Ambev, the countryâs largest beverage company, which includes Skol, plays a role in strengthening the idea that women are objects.
Aware of that, young feminists Priscilla Ferrari and Mila Alves decided they had to do something when, in 2015, they saw a Carnival street advertising from Skol with the sentence âI forgot my ânoâ at home.â Using black tape, the two added the words âand brought my âneverâ,â to the add and shared a picture on Facebook.
BANG! In a couple of days over 7,000 people shared their post, and what started as a personal protest from two friends became an online battlefield against Skol and rape culture.
The discussion went on fire on social networks and mainstream media, and fingers were pointed at Skolâs part on supporting rape culture.
In a few days, Skol replaced all outdoor ads, from all over the country. The new ones had messages of respect for women during the five-days party. The company also published an apologetic note â and thatâs not common for companies in Brazil! Weâre used to these backlashes going cold and ending in no real change, but since the crisis Skol has shown they really learned their lesson.
In 2017, the beer launched a Carnival campaign called âreposterâ. âThese images are part of our past,â states the campaign video, along with images of semi-nude blond girls selling beer in dozens of posters. Six women illustrators were invited to redesign ads that, in the brandâs own words, âdoesnât represent us anymoreâ. From the support to women artists to the acknowledgement of their mistakes, the campaign indicated that Skol was doing its best to change the role of women on its ads.
After that, the brand had transgender singer Pablo Vittar as cover girl and has launched a special edition of coloured cans to celebrate Brazilian diversity, among other actions that show a significant change in their branding since the crisis of 2015.
The role of advertising in promoting social changes is of course limited, but its power cannot be denied. In this case activism led to a major change â and it started with two girls and a black tape roll.
Um rolo de fita isolante: a mudança pode ser simples assim!
Todos os anos a mais famosa festividade brasileira reĂșne milhĂ”es de pessoas nas ruas com as fantasias mais engraçadas e criativas que se pode imaginar (o melhor do Brasil Ă© realmente o brasileiro!). Somos todos guardiĂ”es da regra de ouro: dance como se nĂŁo houvesse amanhĂŁ! Infelizmente, esse mesmo clima que torna o Carnaval tĂŁo incrivelmente divertido tambĂ©m coloca mulheres e meninas em risco.
MultidÔes na rua e consumo intenso de ålcool traduzem-se todos os anos em picos nos casos de assédio nas ruas e estupros, mostrando quão forte é a crença de que a mera presença de mulheres no Carnaval de rua é por si só uma forma de consentimento.
A indĂșstria da publicidade nĂŁo ajuda. Se usar o corpo feminino para vender Ă© um clichĂȘ mundial, o Carnaval brasileiro leva a tendĂȘncia a um outro patamar. A Ambev, maior empresa de bebidas do paĂs, detĂ©m 26 marcas de cerveja â incluindo a lĂder Skol â e desempenha um papel histĂłrico no fortalecimento da ideia de que mulheres sĂŁo objetos.
Cientes disso, as jovens feministas Priscilla Ferrari e Mila Alves decidiram que tinham que fazer algo quando, em 2015, viram um outdoor de Carnaval da Skol com a frase âesqueci o ânĂŁoâ em casaâ. Usando fita preta, as duas acrescentaram as palavras âe trouxe o ânuncaââ ao anĂșncio e compartilharam uma foto no Facebook. Que tiro! Em poucos dias, mais de 7 mil pessoas compartilharam o post, e o que começou como um protesto pessoal de duas amigas se tornou um campo de batalha virtual contra a Skol.
A discussĂŁo pegou fogo nas redes sociais e na grande mĂdia, e as acusaçÔes de que a Skol estaria contribuindo para fortalecer a cultura do estupro foram tĂŁo contundentes que a marca nĂŁo pode ignorĂĄ-las.
Em alguns dias, todos os anĂșncios da campanha foram substituĂdos, no Brasil todo. Os outdoors novos traziam frases que pretendiam estimular o respeito pelas mulheres durante os cinco dias de festa. A empresa tambĂ©m publicou uma nota de desculpas â e nĂłs sabemos como isso Ă© raro no Brasil! Normalmente, histĂłrias como essa simplesmente esfriam atĂ© perder totalmente a força, e nenhuma mudança real acontece, mas, desde a crise, a Skol mostrou que realmente aprendeu a lição.
Em 2017, a cerveja lançou uma campanha de carnaval chamada âreposterâ. âEssas imagens fazem parte do nosso passadoâ, afirma o vĂdeo da campanha, mostrando imagens de garotas
