Halsey, who performed at the event, takes the company to task via an Instagram post Sunday night saying she can’t support the company’s stance “motivated by stereotype.”
Halsey thought performing as part of the 2018 "Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show" would be the highlight of her year, but recent transphobic comments have changed her mind in a major way.
The singer took to her Instagram page on Sunday night, after the event aired on the East Coast, with some choice words about its "lack of inclusivity" in regards to trans people, which she says is "based on stereotype."
"After I filmed the performance, some comments were made regarding the show that I simply cannot ignore," she wrote. She then directed her ten million followers to GLSEN, an organization working on behalf of LGBTQ+ youth.
"If you are a trans person reading this and these comments have made you feel alienated or invalidated, please know that you have allies," she wrote. "We stand in solidarity and complete and total acceptance is the only ‘fantasy’ I support."
??? @GLSEN – glsen.org
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While the artist did not specify the specific comments he was referring to, her use of "fantasy" in quotes would seem to make it pretty clear. The entire show was filmed almost a month ago on Nov. 8, and on that same day Vogue spoke with a couple of the people behind the show, including chief marketing officer of L Brands Ed Razek.
After defending the show’s lack of plus-sized models by saying that VS attempted such a televised show in 2000 and met with a lack of interest, he then explained why he thought they should not have "transexuals" on the show, an antiquated term often used negatively toward the trans community.
"It’s like, why doesn’t your show do this? Shouldn’t you have transsexuals in the show? No. No, I don’t think we should," he said. "Well, why not? Because the show is a fantasy. It’s a 42-minute entertainment special. That’s what it is."
Saying he doesn’t they should have transgender models because "the show is a fantasy" suggests that transgender people have no place in fantasies, or idealized visions of the industry. It was a seemingly throwaway comment by Razek, but it certainly didn’t slide by Halsey, and he received plenty of online backlash as well.
Meanwhile, the company is in a bit of turmoil, with CEO Jan Singer resigning less than two weeks after the taping of this special amid declining sales and ratings, as Fox Business reported.
After reaching a peak in the ratings in 2011 with 10.3 million viewers, the "Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show" has shed more than half of its viewers, reaching a new low of just 5 million viewers in 2017.
It remains to be seen how many people tuned in for the 2018 edition of the "Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show," but with 10.1 million followers, there’s an almost certain chance more people will see Halsey’s comments about VS than will see the show itself.
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Stars Strut the Pink Carpet at the 2018 Victoria's Secret Fashion Show
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