Is the Sydney Sweeney ad really that big of a deal?

Written by Chloé Cerisier

Illustrated by Vivika Sahajpal

Sydney Sweeney is everywhere. She’s on your screen, starring in the new romcom, ‘Anyone But You’. She’s taking selfies with the latest Samsung Galaxy phone. She’s selling her bathwater. And lately, she’s been making news for her great “genes” (or was it jeans?).

The latter arrived in late July in the form of an American Eagle campaign for denim. In one advert, the camera pans over to Sydney Sweeney lying down, as she’s zipping up her blue jeans and performs what is now a viral line: “Genes are passed down from parents to offspring, often determining traits like hair colour, personality, and even eye colour. My jeans are blue.” In another cut, she says, “My body’s composition is determined by my genes,” as the camera zooms in on her cleavage. The commercials were a clear reference to Sweeney having “great genes,” while wearing “great jeans”. If it was meant to be a funny play on homophones, it quickly spiralled into a broader discussion around beauty standards, white supremacy, and the denim industry.

The main critique of the campaign lies in the meaning of having “great genes”, suggesting the existence of inferior genes. Some have argued that the ad alludes to eugenics, a pseudo-scientific theory based upon the human race improving itself by breeding out “less desirable traits”. Therefore, Sydney Sweeney, a conventionally attractive actress,  arguably represents what the brand considers “great genes”. I may even venture to say that she represents what part of the American population may deem as admirable genetics: white skin, blonde hair, blue eyes. Many, therefore, felt the campaign was playing into the current rise of right-wing glorification of whiteness in America. After all, it has not even been a year since President Donald Trump, who was at the time out of office, identified “bad genes” as the cause of crimes committed by immigrants. 

Politicians quickly stepped into the debate. Vice President JD Vance announced on the ‘Ruthless’ podcast that “The lesson they’ve apparently taken is, ‘We’re going to attack people as Nazis for thinking Sydney Sweeney is beautiful.’” Governor Ted Cruz wrote on X, “Wow. Now the crazy Left has come out against beautiful women. I’m sure that will poll well….”. Even President Trump wrote on his social media Truth, “Sydney Sweeney, a registered Republican, has the HOTTEST ad out there. […] Go get ‘em Sydney!”. 

However, beyond being a semantic conversation, it is also important to remind ourselves of the backstory of denim wear. Before denim became typically fashionable, it was seen as a fabric of control. After the abolishment of slavery in the United States, many formerly enslaved people became sharecroppers working on the same land, under the same white authority, but now earning just enough for it not to be denoted as slavery. Across the U.S., they wore the same blue denim uniform, chosen for its durability and utility. Within prisons, incarcerated men, many of them Black, were forced into labour while wearing denim jumpsuits. Plantation owners and prison officers saw clothing as a way to mark the enslaved, with blue denim visually standing out within a crowd. If someone were to run away, their clothes would betray them. The fabric that Sydney Sweeney is now selling as a symbol of her “great genes” was once called “Negro cloth”.  

Later on, civil rights activists of the 1960s chose to wear denim in their marches, highlighting how little had changed since slavery. When Martin Luther King and Ralph Abernathy were arrested in Alabama in 1963, they were wearing jeans. Suddenly, the fabric of control became a way to speak back to power. The very fact of wearing denim became a form of protest.

The American Eagle “great jeans” pun lands differently when considering which populations were first made to wear denim. They weren’t symbols of confidence; they were uniforms of oppression. Fashion is never just fashion. It carries an inherently political story. And for denim, it only becomes cool once it’s safe – once it’s worn by someone who looks like Sydney Sweeney.

Many have compared the campaign to KATSEYE’s Gap ad, which aired in late August, embodying diversity and uniqueness. “This is denim as you define it,” reads the social media caption. “Your individuality. Your self-expression. Your style. Powerful on your own. Even better together”. Indeed, the six members of the group come from very distinct ethnicities, as Daniela, Lara, and Megan are all Americans with diverse heritages, while Sophia is from the Philippines, Manon from Switzerland, and Yoonchae from South Korea. It shows how, when it’s done well, ads can celebrate inclusivity instead of individualism.

American Eagle went on Instagram to state that the campaign “is and always was about the jeans.” And even if that’s true, one thing’s for sure: the ad achieved the goal of getting people to talk about the brand. However, when you live in a country originally built on racial hierarchy, celebrating genetic superiority is incredibly dangerous, especially in an era of resurgence of media reasserting conservative white values. We’re living in a moment where the current administration is aiming at dismantling DEI initiatives nationally, using dehumanising language regarding immigrants, and promoting policies designed to limit immigration or even deport populations. The American Eagle ad doesn’t exist in isolation. It exists in the context of politicians using this pseudo-scientific language about genetics to justify measures that harm Black and brown communities, and we should be aware of it.

The American Eagle ad featuring Sydney Sweeney has been criticised for the racial undertones in its slogan. This article delves into the political history of denim and why the advertisement has garnered so much controversy.

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