Sydney Sweeney and American Eagle, unintentionally, expose the decay of wokeism

The new—and mega viral—Sydney Sweeney jeans ad for American Eagle (AE) not only generated a nearly 20% spike in the stock market for the American apparel brand in the past month but also a furious reaction from media, fashion critics, and even progressive TikTokers who are accusing the firm and the actress of pushing "eugenic," "racist," and "Nazi" propaganda.

In recent days, after the 'Euphoria' and 'The White Lotus' star went viral on social media for her jeans campaign, fashion critics from outlets such as The Washington Post, MSNBC, Good Morning America (GMA), and Salon attacked the ad for, they claimed, pushing "retrograde" rhetoric, even suggesting that the campaign would be promoting the idea of supremacism through the "Sydney Sweeney Has Great Jeans/Genes" pun.

In the campaign's various videos, Sweeney appears wearing baggy jeans, highlighting her physical attributes and making some wordplay about AE's genes and jeans.

For example, in one of the videos, as the camera pans down to her eyes to focus on them, the actress comments, "Genes are passed down from parents to offspring, often determining traits like hair color, personality, and even eye color. My jeans are blue."

This approach to the campaign was enough for various media critics to accuse the actress and the company of promoting eugenics and white supremacism.

"Eugenics movements in the U.S. often promoted the idea of ‘good genes’ to encourage reproduction among White, able-bodied people while justifying the forced sterilization of others. Critics say those ideas still show up in modern advertising and influencer culture, often unexamined," wrote Salon weekend editor CK Smith.

National television also addressed the controversy. Particularly viral was a clip from ABC's GMA First Look program on Tuesday, which featured Kean University professor Robin Landa relating the phrase "good jeans" to the eugenics movement.

"The pun ‘good jeans’ activates troubling historical associations for this country. The American eugenics movement, in its prime between 1900 and 1940, weaponized the idea of good genes just to justify White supremacism," the professor noted.

Along those lines, Rachel Tashjian, a fashion critic for the Washington Post, and Shane O'Neill, a fashion journalist, wrote an extensive analysis for the WaPo validating the allegations against American Eagle and the actress.

"For the past five or six years, it seemed like fashion and pop culture were very interested in—even dedicated to—body positivity. Now we’re being fed a lot of images of thinness, Whiteness, and unapologetic wealth porn, what with this campaign, influencers like Alix Earle, and Sabrina Carpenter’s album cover," Tashjian wrote. "But it is strange to see a brand like American Eagle go in this direction. Should teenagers be served a vision of sexuality and fashion that feels so regressive?"

Meanwhile, O'Neill said the ad reminded him of Trump Administration rhetoric.

"The first thing I thought of when I heard the tagline ‘Sydney Sweeney has great jeans’ was the DHS Instagram account, which posted a subtly racist painting a few weeks ago and an explicitly racist painting last week," the journalist wrote. "The latter depicted a gigantic blonde buxom woman chasing away Native people to make way for White settlers. When this is the imagery being promoted by our government, a pun about ‘genes’ hits differently."

Others, such as Hanna Holland, a producer for MSNBC, said the campaign is a symptom of U.S. society's cultural shifts toward conservatism, suggesting that's a bad thing.

"The advertising, the choice of Sweeney as the sole figure in the ad, and the reaction on the Internet reflect a rampant cultural shift toward whiteness, conservatism, and capitalist exploitation. Sweeney is both a symptom and a participant in it," Holland wrote in a column published Monday on MSNBC.com.

In addition to progressive media and critics, multiple TikTokers went viral questioning Sweeney and American Eagle.

Progressivism forgets about domestic violence

On social networks, however, many users came out in defense of the brand and the actress, calling the comments about "eugenics" and "Nazi propaganda" overblown.

Other users, moreover, pointed out that the collaboration between Sweeney and AE in part seeks to raise awareness about domestic violence.

The clothing company's page reads, "A butterfly motif on the back pocket of the jean represents domestic violence awareness, which Sydney is passionate about."

"In support of the cause, 100% of the purchase price from ‘The Sydney Jean’ will be donated to Crisis Text Line, a nonprofit offering free, 24/7, confidential mental health support to anyone in need—just text 741741."

The reaction, no doubt, has been unconscionable. The American progressive left, desperate for how wokeism is losing strength and appeal for major brands, is now outraged by a commercial that only emulates the classic ad that combines a famous and objectively attractive actress with classic elements, such as a car or quality jeans, without social claims of any kind or an ideological downgrade behind it.

Basically, progressive media and critics are accusing AE of exactly what Bud Light did when it hired trans influencer Dylan Mulvaney or Nike when it pushed 'body positive' campaigns that received, in turn, a barrage of criticism and backlash from consumers. The difference is that, while here they spun a fine line to seek controversy, those campaigns were overt and conveyed a clear message that critics denounced.

In contrast, progressives ignored AE and Sweeney’s good-faith effort to combat domestic violence simply because the campaign didn’t deliver a direct message, but rather a subtle one—pledging the profits to a nonprofit organization. Clearly, even if it wasn’t their intention, the actress and the brand exposed the moral and cultural decay of wokeism.