Lingerie Brand Featuring Male Model Shut Down Haters on Instagram
Updated May 5 2020, 1:56 p.m. ET
It's 2020 and gender is fluid! It's time for the whole world to recognize that. Playful Promises is an inclusive lingerie company that offers extended sizes and recently posted a picture on Instagram of a male model, Jake DuPree, wearing the heck out on one of its lingerie sets.
The photo received some backlash, because they always do, but Playful Promises clapped back with the most no-nonsense responses to their haters and consequently went totally viral because of it. First, the steamy ad that caused the stir...
I mean, hello?! Come on. This is incredible. Anyone who thinks any differently is clearly living in a different, worse reality. But indeed, there were some people who didn't appreciate this fierce, sexy ad. Luckily, Playful Promises wasn't having any of it.
"This is not attractive at all" is probably the biggest lie this person has ever told, but that's beside the point. Playful Promises laid down some truth here, a truth that is obvious to many.
Clothes are just clothes. Just because we've been conditioned to forget that gender is a construct and we've been bombarded with messaging about what's "appropriate" for male-presenting people and female-presenting people to wear does not mean that's the actual truth!
How people express their gender is a choice, and we should embrace everyone's freedom to choose how they dress and express their gender. The only reasons one wouldn't are rooted in prejudice and harmful, antiquated social "norms." It's beyond time to open up our views on gender and recognize how incredibly stupid it was to enforce these restrictions in the first place. But lots of people still have trouble with that.
Playful Promises will have none of this ignorant negativity. Their above comment drips with sarcasm. It's perfect. The brand has wasted no time silencing its haters, and that's why it went completely viral.
Twitter user @givemeyourblood posted screenshots of these comments along with the caption, "Playful Promises is the only lingerie brand I recognize from now on," and it's been liked and retweeted hundreds of thousands of times.
In a follow-up tweet, they give us even more reasons to love the brand, like we needed them: "Other good reasons to support them: They’re quite size-inclusive (US 4-26) and for every order they receive, a tree is planted!" OK, Playful Promises is certifiably awesome. Not to mention, they re-sparked an important discussion about gender expression.
Let's say it a little louder for the bigots in the back! It is time to let go of your outdated notions of gender and masculinity vs. femininity. It is time to embrace beauty in all its forms.
These toxic notions of gender are so harmful to men and women and those of all other genders as well. As one Twitter user pointed out, "Men don’t dress for women to find them attractive. They dress so other men do not hurt them."
Kudos to Playful Promises for celebrating all different genders and bodies and expressions and for not backing down when faced with backward hate. Here's to hoping that our collective views of gender continue to evolve.