With a huge social media following and an ever-growing resume of experience, it makes sense why brands would want to make model-of-the-moment Kendall Jenner the face of any of their campaigns…but that doesn't mean it won't piss people off.
In fact, the Spanish fashion house Mango reeled in the Jenner sister for their spring 2016 "tribal" collection, and while this may seem like a good move to help bolster the brand's image, it's been doing a bit of the opposite.
Considering the collection is centered on the "tribal spirit" of the African Savannah, many people became enraged that the company used Kendall rather than a person of color as the face of the campaign.
Here's what people took to Twitter to say over the issue:
Lol at Mango's new collection being called Tribal spirit. Lol at Kendall Jenner being the face of that collection.
? candice swanepoel (@diorhardin) January 15, 2016@NylonMag @KendallJenner ...seriously @Mango? You should know better. Leave cultural appropriation in 2015.
? linda (@lvndxv) January 15, 2016Kendall Jenner has been chosen as the face of Mango's Africa-themed campaign: https://t.co/frB3IdBDvD @runway_riot pic.twitter.com/yF7sna6zTH
? Malikah Kelly (@malikahkelly) January 15, 2016Mango's Vice President Daniel Lopez explained to Women's Wear Daily of their decision, "We thought that she was the best model to embody this trend. And obviously the upside with that is that, as a model, she's very professional, she works fantastically. As a celebrity she has huge repercussions in the market and among her followers."
But Kendall aside, the entirety of the collection itself could be considered controversial. Saying the collection gains inspiration from the African Savannah seems to limit the masses of tribes across the desert under one stereotypical umbrella, despite the heavy cultural differences among them.
Either way, criticism directed at Kendall is presumably misguided—she didn't come up with the campaign, she just showed up for her job and posed for pictures.
In similar circumstances, Kendall's little sister Kylie Jenner faced backlash recently after posing with a wheelchair in Interview magazine. Once again, the reality star was a muse rather than a factor in the decision-making process for the spread, which was meant to make a bold statement, not spark controversy.
"Our intention was to create a powerful set of pictures that get people thinking about image and creative expression, including the set with the wheelchair," the publication told E! News at the time." But our intention was certainly not to offend anyone."
Stay tuned for an all new Keeping Up With the Kardashians this Sunday at 9 p.m.