H&M is STILL running adverts ‘sexualising’ children with the slogan ‘make those heads turn’ – despite making grovelling apology when they were forced to pull ‘disgusting’ promo featuring young girls in school uniform after backlash

H&M is still advertising to children with the slogan ‘make those heads turn’, even after the company was forced to take a photo of two young girls in uniform, who were branded ‘sexualised’ by their parents.

One ad, which appears to be from the same ‘Back to School’ campaign and has the same tagline, is still up on the brand’s Instagram despite an apology and assurances that it had removed the ad that sparked controversy.

A short video shows two girls turning and watching as a young boy walks by, with the caption: “How to turn those heads on the first day of school.”

Another post on the H&M Kids page shows a little girl wearing a black tulle dress as the company announced its Halloween range in October.

The caption reads: ‘From glamorous divas to stylish trendsetters, get ready to turn heads and make this Halloween the best one yet.’

After shoppers saw a Facebook ad with the slogan ‘make those heads turn’, it sparked criticism on social media, forcing the company to apologize and reflect on its processes.

‘We have removed this ad. “We are deeply sorry for the offense this has caused and we will explore how we present our campaigns in the future,” the organization said in a statement.

The brand added that the campaign was “live in Australia only” but went viral amid the backlash.

Photos taken during what appears to be the same photo shoot also remain on the global @hm_kids Instagram page, which has 3.8 million followers.

The same girls depicted in the viral ‘Back to School fashion’ ad are also featured in a video featuring a little boy wearing a green baseball jacket.

Meanwhile, more content, also showing a young girl modeling the clothes of a pink school bus set, was reshared with the same caption by parenting website babychakra.com.

Furious activists and shoppers have blasted H&M for the campaign, which was first launched last summer after photos of it resurfaced online.

High-profile Australian feminist commentator Melinda Tankard Reist fumed: ‘@hm @hmaustralia what is your intention with this sponsored Facebook ad?’ she smoked.

‘Little schoolgirls generally don’t want to ‘attract attention’. The large numbers of people I interact with in schools want to be left alone to learn and have fun.’

Psychologist Dr. Pam Spurr expressed her anger in a post on Boycott H&M. A shameful exploitation of girls.’

Another user said: ‘What the hell is this. H&M sexualizes children’. Meanwhile, another called it an ‘inappropriate ad’ and said H&M should ‘think again very quickly’.

One What does H&M think?’

Another welcomed the brand’s apology, but said the brand “has not yet addressed how someone within the company showed such appalling judgment in commissioning and signing off.”

The brand responded on social media: ‘This advertisement has now been removed. We are deeply sorry for the offense this has caused and we will look into how we present campaigns in the future.” H&M has also been approached for comment.

It comes after an advert for Rimmel London featuring Love Island star Lana Jenkins was banned in December.

The Facebook ad, seen on September 9, read: “Get ready to slay this back-to-school season. Receive 25% off Multi-Tasker Concealer and other Rimmel favorites…’

The post included a video of 25-year-old influencer Jenkins applying makeup, with the caption below: “25% off Rimmel back to school.”

Two people complained that the ad was irresponsible because it included the text “Get ready to cover this back-to-school season.”

They said it played on the insecurities of young girls by suggesting they would only be ready for a new school year if they wore make-up.

Coty UK, trading as Rimmel London, said the ad was part of its ‘Back to School’ campaign but “in no way” communicated the need to wear make-up, and was instead aimed at women aged 18 to 35 who were interested in cosmetics. beauty, fashion and makeup.

It said the wording, “Get ready to slay this back-to-school season,” was meant to motivate and build confidence, rather than prey on young girls’ insecurities.

The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) said the words ‘back-to-school season’, combined with the ad’s vibrant pink color scheme, the books and star emojis and the fluffy pink pen held by Jenkins in the video, would especially be understood by viewers referred to the time of year when students returned to high school or sixth form after the summer holidays, and would appeal to them.

The ASA said: ‘We considered that the use of the word ‘slay’ in the claim ‘Get ready to slay this back-to-school season’ implied that girls or young women were more likely to succeed or doing well when they went back to school wearing makeup, in this case a concealing and contouring product.

‘We felt the ad had an effect on young girls’ insecurities about their appearance and therefore concluded it was irresponsible.’

The ASA ruled that the advert should not appear again, adding: ‘We told Coty UK, trading as Rimmel London, that they should not play on the insecurities of young girls by suggesting it was necessary to make wear up to school to succeed. ‘