Maxim Ralph Lauren Ad

I recently brought in an old issue of Maxim Magazine (with Anna Kournikova cover) provided by my dormmate to show a particular Ralph Lauren ad and how it dealt with the issue of race.

The ad is an insert ad that markets new Ralph Lauren fragrances called The Big Pony Collection. The ad shows 4 Males (3 white, one black) engaging in the sport and luxurious social life surrounding the game of polo. There are a variety of women in the ad, who function primarily as the boys' significant others. The particularly interesting feature of the ad are the black couple, Nathan and Naja.

Nathan and Naja are portrayed as fully immersed in the predominantly white culture of polo. Indeed, they function as basically a white heterosexual couple and act and look as if they are stereotypically white. all our equals in this Of course, there are no interracial couples (3 white couples and 1 black couple), but there is nothing other than skin color to separate them. They are all the same people despite diferent heritages and are all part of this luxurious polo lifestyle.

The ad de-Africanizes Nathan and Naja (both are light skinned and deal solely with Caucasian brethren). The ad is a prime example of how even when different races other than Caucasian are incorporated into ads, they are often made to act as typical white men and women. For once, I would like to see an ad celebrate diversity in a way that actually focuses on the diversity and not the commonalities. While it is important to realize we are all human, we are not all the same humans and that is vital to our world.