The party has reached an agreement with the company on the way forward after the online advert, which denigrated black women’s hair.
EFF representatives, led by party leader Julius Malema, met with a delegation from Unilever on 10 September 2020 following demonstrations over a racist ad for TRESemme hair products that appeared on the Clicks website. Picture: @EFFSouthAfrica/EWN
JOHANNESBURG – South Africans reacted with mixed feelings to Unilever’s measure to account for its racist advert following a meeting with the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF).
The party has reached an agreement with the company on the way forward after the online advert, which denigrated black women’s hair.
Clicks and Unilever came under fire after the TRESemmé advert on the health and beauty retailer’s website.
Unilever agreed to withdraw the TRESemmé brand from all retail outlets for a period of 10 days and will continue to monitor transformation within the company.
Many social media users have praised the outcome of today’s meeting between Unilever, retailer Clicks and the EFF, with the hashtag #ThankYouEFF trending on twitter.
The EFF has lived a decade in only four days. #ThankYouEFF pic.twitter.com/1wPglUD0p2
— Mbuyiseni Ndlozi (@MbuyiseniNdlozi) September 10, 2020
We choose the EFF because the EFF chooses Us ❤️ #thankYouEFF #EFFMustRise pic.twitter.com/qEruFWsDAL
— Naledi Chirwa🐝👑 (@NalediChirwa) September 10, 2020
We have called off the Clicks protest. As part of showing remorse they will donate 50 000 sanitary pads, sanitizers, and masks and also give full scholarships to 5 black girls to pursue pharmaceutical qualifications, delist Tresemme, and enlist black products in their stores. pic.twitter.com/cEbywbUdLT
— Floyd Shivambu (@FloydShivambu) September 10, 2020
However, some have labelled the measure as ineffective to address the country’s deeply rooted systemic racism.
The EFF’s Vuyani Pambo said: “Clicks will withdraw all TRESemmé SA products from all its stores and replace them with locally produced products. In addition, Clicks will donate a minimum of 50,000 sanitary towels, 50,000 sanitisers, and masks to rural and informal settlements identified by the EFF.”
The party has called off all protests to be ended at Clicks stored nationwide with immediate effect following three days of unrest.
WATCH: EFF members protest outside Clicks store
Pick n Pay, Woolworths, DisChem, Shoprite and Makro have joined others in removing the products from their shelves.