ANZ reveals confronting campaign calling for more #LoveSpeech in support of the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras
For this year’s Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras sponsorship, ANZ has released a confronting campaign shining a light on the hate speech endured by members of the LGBTIQ+ community.
The launch film, directed by The Glue Society, features a collection of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transsexual, intersex and queer individuals sharing the homophobic slurs they have been called throughout their lives and how it has affected them. The ad reveals the statistic that homophobic slurs are posted online more than 43 times a minute. At the end it calls for Australians to share more ‘#LoveSpeech’.
According to You Gov’s January 2020 Galaxy Research, 74% of the LGBTIQ+ community believe that homophobic comments directed at them is a major issue. Only 34% of the community feel confident calling it out.
The research also found that 52% of non-LGBTIQ+ Australians believe that the LGBTIQ+ community get offended too easily.
The campaign, created by TBWA Melbourne, aims to empower the LGBTIQ+ community and its allies to challenge homophobic language and share Love Speech instead.
The out-of-home element of the campaign sees the homophobic slurs ‘Boy should never wear dresses’ disarmed by graffiti artist David Lee Pereira adding phrase ‘Without a killer pair of heels’.
The billboards are positioned in prominent locations along the Sydney Mardi Gras route. Digital executions use a similar aesthetic with slurs transformed into Love Speech.
The digital #LoveSpeech executions
ANZ has also developed a Google Chrome extension, titled ‘Hurt Blocker’, that transforms hate speech into emojis in users’ windows. A guide to Love Speech has also been created to help people understand how the language they are using can hurt others, even when it is unintentional.
Benjamin Law, Moana Hope and Georgie Stone will be taking part in the campaign through a public relations strategy, executed by Thrive.
Sweta Mehra, ANZ chief marketing officer, said she was proud of the brand’s partnership with the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras.
“We are incredibly proud of the work we have done over the years to demonstrate support for our LGBTIQ+ staff, customers and community. This year’s campaign is no different. With unkind, cruel and damaging comments directed at the community every single day, we think it’s time for more #LoveSpeech,” Mehra said.
A statement from TBWA Melbourne said: “As a long-time sponsor of Mardi Gras, ANZ has a remarkable history of support for LGBTIQ+ inclusion. In a world where intentional hatred and casual homophobia can be shouted from the rooftops without any real consequence, #LoveSpeech draws a line in the sand for a more civilised, more respectful and less combative conversation.”
Thrive PR added: “As highlighted by the research, hurtful language is not only an issue that deeply affects the LGBTIQ+ community, but one that affects us as a nation. What is most startling is the discrepancy between what is perception and what is sadly, reality. We encourage everyone to get behind ANZ’s Love Speech campaign. Let’s spread a little more #LoveSpeech far and wide.”
The Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras runs from 14 February until 1 March. The parade will take place on 29 February.
Credits
ANZ Bank Australia
TBWA Melbourne
Thrive PR
Revolver/Will O’Rourke and The Glue Society
PHD Media
Year after year, ANZ leads from the front with brave, meaningful work.
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Only 43 times a minute? Across the entire internet? Surely that’s a super low estimate. I would have expected that number to be in the thousands. 43 times a minute seems like world peace by internet standards.
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Stunning and brave
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Hats off to ANZ for calling this out – it’s a powerful, important campaign. Well done to all involved.
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Making marginalised people feel like shit for that ‘gotcha’ moment isn’t a good joke, isn’t a good campaign and isn’t a good way to be an ally. This is rainbow capitalism at it’s finest.
I understand the intent is to take a hateful phrase or term and ‘turn it around’ but a marginalised community can reclaim slurs – a corporation can’t. ANZ should instead be donating to LGBTQ organisations, promoting anti-bullying and lobbying the government to do better when it comes to trans rights. This is a ‘woke’ gay-friendly campaign for straight people. Seeing these hateful slurs in print is extremely hurtful and for an ally like ANZ to not understand how insensitive this campaign is disappointing.
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Well, I haven’t had this many homophobic slurs thrown at me when just going online since the plebiscite, and frankly I’m not enjoying this trip down memory lane.
This ad has a point to make, but they make it at the expense of the people they were meant to be standing up for. The irony of an ad trying to reduce hate speech by broadcasting a full minute of it, and that tries to explain to people that it is not okay to use this language by using it on repeat. Honestly.
As advertisers, when we are shooting for the emotions of our consumers we need to better consider how that bullet will shatter and who will end up being the collateral damage.
As a member of the queer community I am sick to death of being used as a hollow, emotional plot-point in a brands narrative. I have loved a number of ANZ’s previous ads but this was misguided to the extreme.
I hope that next time we talk about #lovespeech, perhaps we can demonstrate some.
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Seen the ‘boys should never wear dresses without a pair of killer heel’ billboard near where I live. I’m a girl and I don’t like it – for years, people have been telling girls how they should dress to be attractive and fit in. Now they’re telling boys the same thing under the disguise of promoting equality? Boys (and girls) can wear dresses with whatever shoes they like
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In my view this is yet another example of well-intentioned people allowing a creative idea to drive the strategy rather than vice versa. This happens too frequently in a number of areas where creatives are charged with coming up with ideas to combat discrimination – and then end up reinforcing negative expressions/stereotypes because they fail to understand that that approach simply reinforces those already negative and contributes to normalising those expressions in the neutrals. Not good. Happy to show examples ….
ps always preferable to model the desired behaviour – and if show the undesired behaviour, follow with the desired!
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