EYE-OPENING
Blind To The Irony: Chinese Company Sells ‘Helen Keller’ Sunglasses
A CHINESE COMPANY HAS COME UP WITH A MARKETING CAMPAIGN THAT BOTH BAFFLES AND AMAZES THE WORLD: a line of sunglasses called “Helen Keller.”
The Wall Street Journal reports that the fashion company Xiamen Jinzhi is aware Keller was blind, but want to capitalize on her “philanthropist spirit.”
Helen Keller is a famous figure in Chinese schools but obviously something’s been lost in the translation. Helen Keller was the first deaf-blind person to earn a Bachelor of Arts degree.
The ad for the sunglasses shows a beautiful brunette stepping from an airplane to a waiting crowd of paparazzi. When she decides to don her Helen Keller sunglasses the cameras start to click and the firm’s motto is: “You see the world, the world sees you.”
The American Foundation for the Blind’s president Carl Augusto told MSNBC that “there is no evidence she wore sunglasses in our archives of 1,500 photographs and 80,000 documents, not a mention or photo of her wearing sunglasses.”
Augusto continued, “We’re never happy unless Helen Keller is portrayed …as an inspiration and someone who showed the world that people with disabilities are just like everyone else.”
He admitted Keller had quite a sense of humor and probably would have “laughed hysterically” when she heard about the odd homage to her legacy.
Of course the company is getting a lot of publicity around the world and the UK’s Daily Mail might have said it best: “Cultural Blindspot?”
The sunglasses are in poor taste but I bet they’ll soon be in a store near you. What’s next: a Stephen Hawking microphone for karaoke?
Linda Seccaspina loves snark and scandal and can’t wait for Beyoncé to get busted for faking her pregnancy. She writes regularly for the dating site Zoomers. Follow her on Twitter.
1 Comment
Oh dear, how said.
From the same country who sell the Poo Fuk Curry.
I’ll stick with my Ray Bans.