J. Crew and its subdued preppy togs aren't exactly controversial, but a recent online ad campaign has created quite an uproar. It features the company's creative director, Jenna Lyons, painting her young son Beckett's toenails a bright pink. A caption reads: "Quality time, 'Lucky for me, I ended up with a boy whose favorite color is pink. Toenail painting is way more fun in neon.'" Conservative commentators have taken issue with the ad's perceived gender-bending, calling it "blatant propaganda celebrating transgendered children." Incendiary or just innocent fun?
It's certainly not innocent: This is a "dramatic example" of the way our culture is allowing children to choose which gender they identify with, says Dr. Keith Ablow at Fox News, something that "can throw our species into real real psychological turmoil — not to mention crowding operating rooms with procedures to grotesquely amputate body parts." J. Crew seems to "respect their own creative notions a whole lot more than any creative Force in the universe," but, by doing so, they're exacting "psychological penalty" on a young boy.
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