Backlash over US menstrual product company Tampax's tweet that 'sexualises women'
By Bronte Gossling|
U?S tampon company Tampax is facing criticism over a social media post that naysayers have blasted for "sexualising women".
"You're in their DMs. We're in them. We are not the same," the period product company wrote on Monday on Twitter.
Tampax's tweet? is a parody of the internet meme that makes light of the popular online phrase "slide into the DMs" จC which is typically when someone who is attracted to another person directly messages them on social media จC but it's raised more than a few eyebrows.
READ MORE: Why Princess Mary is returning to Australia
"Yikes!" one Twitter user replied to the tweet. "This is BEYOND inappropriate from a corporation."
"Real weird for a company that sells products made for woman's natural bodily functions to make a tweet sexualising woman for using their products," another person wrote.
Hours later, however, the brand, which is owned by Procter & Gamble, doubled-down on their controversial message, ?retweeting the original post with an extra note.
"Refused to let Twitter shut down before we shared this tweet?," Tampax wrote above original message, in reference to the chaos plaguing the platform since Elon Musk's reign began.
READ MORE: Couple slammed for 'tacky' demand on wedding invitation
In response, the hashtag #BoycottTampax began trending, with thousands of Twitter users urging others to dump the brand for "sexualising" its customer base.
?"Stop supporting brands that don't support women," one person wrote. "This is a disgusting and misogynistic tweet. Feminine products are not to be sexualised ever."
Others highlighted that of the people who menstruate, many are underage, making the tweet potentially predatory.
?"Considering [you] are sexualising everyone who gets a period, including underage girls, you should probably get a different attitude about your (former?) customers," one person wrote.
READ MORE: Medical emergency left a 'ticking time bomb' in mum-of-five's neck
Not everyone is on board for the public boycott request, with some people saying that the backlash Tampax, which is known for its firm stance that "not all people with periods are women" and links to transgender icons Jeffrey Marsh and Dylan Mulvaney?, is transphobic.
"This whole #BoycottTampax thing is just terfs [trans-exclusionary radical feminists] finding some tiny thing to boycott a company that supports trans people," one person wrote.
"Oh look, bigots want to #BoycottTampax for supporting transgender women," another said. "Transphobia is all the rage this season."
Tampax's Twitter account has been dormant since the posts, and the brand and its parent company Procter & Gamble have yet to share a public statement on the controversy. ?
For a daily dose of 9Honey, subscribe to our newsletter here.
