A new ad from Zales Jewelers is just what you'd expect of a jewelry brand at the outset of the holiday season—30 seconds of beautiful couples, sparkly rings, heartfelt music and emotional voiceover. But its inclusion of one same-sex couple has some people up in arms.
More and more brands have been supporting the LGBTQ community, particularly since 2015's Supreme Court same-sex marriage ruling. Jewelers, in particular, have generally embraced the community—it's a good market for selling rings, after all.
But ads with gay couple still provoke some outrage online. This time, the blowback is from usual suspect One Million Moms.
On its website, One Million Moms released a statement accusing Zales of attempting to "normalize sin." It calls for people to boycott the brand, stop into Zales stores and share concerns with store managers, and urge Zales to pull the commercial and "remain neutral" in the culture wars.
"An even greater concern is that the commercial is airing when children are likely watching television," the group says. "To make matters worse, this ad has aired during family viewing time such as football games and prime-time shows."
As a result, Zales social media channels have been flooded. And no post—not even an innocuous one advertising Bulova watches—is safe from outrage. LGBTQ supporters are being vocal as well, pledging to back Zales with their wallets this holiday season. 