Ikea Transgender Commercial Causes Uproar

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In an open letter to Ikea, the Thai Transgender Alliance lambasted the ad as “a parody of a weirdo” that “perpetuates a misunderstanding of transgenderism as a ‘deceitful and deviant lifestyle.’ ” The video is “negative and stereogypical in nature,” according to the group, which also called it a “gross violation of human rights and freedom of expression.”

“Media representation … should evolve and become as diverse as the community those images strive to reflect,” the group wrote. Otherwise, it warned, it could perpetuate attitudes toward the transgender population that “lead to violence and various forms of abuses such as sexual harassment.”

The group is demanding an official statement from Ikea.