‘Diversity is not just for Christmas’ for brands and agencies uniting via #SummerSoWhite
The likes of MediaCom, FCB Inferno, AMV BBDO, Google and Channel 4 have come together to support the #SoWhiteProject’s latest campaign, #SummerSoWhite, which aims to prove to the marketing industry that ‘diversity is not just for Christmas and Easter’ through a series of original inclusive imagery.
#SummerSoWhite represents the BAME community in everyday settings
The photos, which were shot by Helen Marsden and feature models provided by talent agency Looks Like Me, depict children and teenagers enjoying a summer holiday. Aligning with the #SoWhiteProject’s goals, the imagery aims to capture a more accurate representation of what real life looks like for BAME families and communities
"It is critical that we continue to represent society fairly, so when children type in 'family summer holiday' and look at the images online, they see children that look like them,” explained Selma Nicholls, co-founder of #SoWhiteProject and chief executive of Looks Like Me.
“Our aim is to continue to work closely with the marketing and advertising world that represents our children."
The photos will be available on Getty Images thanks to the #SoWhiteProject’s contributor status with the library. They will also run across the billboards of supporter Primesight.
Naren Patel, chief executive of Primesight, added: "Seeing our industry gradually waking up to the difference we need to make in the world, we're proud to be hosting #SummerSoWhite's message of diversity and inclusion on our billboards … we're pleased that our estate will help to start conversations nationwide on the portrayal of our diverse nation in the media."
#SummerSoWhite is a collaboration between the creative and media industries organised through the Communications Diversity Taskforce. Businesses contributing to the taskforce include MediaCom, FCB Inferno, Valenstein & Fatt, Saatchi & Saatchi, AMV BBDO, Google, Ogilvy, Wieden+Kennedy, We Are Social, Mars, Y&R London, Mindshare, Carat, McCann London, BBH, Creature, Sunshine and Channel 4.
The #SoWhiteProject was founded by Nicholls, Utopia's Nadya Powell, Above+Beyond’s Nathalie Gordon and Wren Graham of Sunshine. Launching with the #ChristmasSoWhite campaign last winter, it is supported by Karen Blackett OBE, chairwoman of MediaCom, and Nishma Robb, head of marketing at Google UK.