Christian activists are furious about these shoe adverts
The Australian Christian Lobby is furious about a new ad campaign for a shoe brand.
The ACL, the largest Christian lobbying group in Australia, is furious about the new #grassroots campaign from Dunlop brand Volley, which features nude and scantily-clad models, gay and straight, frolicking in the shoes.
ACL Queensland director Wendy Davis tweeted: “Parents be aware Dunlop Volley still sell sandshoes for school kids, but their website has R rated images as they’re now ‘all about rooting’.
“Volley sandshoes ads are defended as fine for our kids. I’m ridiculed for concern. I’ll cop the ridicule & keep fighting for kid’s innocence.”
Rooting is Australian slang for sex.
The Volley campaign states: “We are children of the sun and are comfortable in our own skin, so don’t tell us who to love or how to be.
“Our campaign is all about the celebration of sexual expression whilst remembering to stay safe. For this reason we’ve joined arms with Ansell condoms in support of safe sex, as whilst we’re all about rooting, we believe in ‘safety first’.
“So stay safe this summer and root for us, root for change, root for VOLLEY.”
Samuel Leighton-Dore, a model who appeared in the campaign, told Mashable: “I’m not sure she’s offended by the images so much as what they seem to represent, which is freedom, sexuality, and … footwear.”
He added: “I think when recognisably Australian brands start to embrace diversity and sexuality in their branding, it’s a sign that organisations like ACL are fighting the tide.”
The ACL is one of the primary opponents of LGBT rights in Australia, battling to censor LGBT-inclusive sex education and block equal marriage.
The head of ACL last year refused to apologise for comparing equal marriage to the Holocaust.
Check out the campaign video below:
