The trademark tennis skirts, thigh high socks, and rubber platform shoes of the popular brand, American Apparel, may become just a memory soon, as the store has announced its bankruptcy in late October. Even though many love their fashions, to me, this bankruptcy is for the best. The phrase, “you are what you eat” can be translated into “you are what you support” and American Apparel has been a supporter of many controversial topics that I find just plain wrong.

Firstly, just flipping through an American Apparel advertisement is almost comparable to looking at a pornographic magazine. Yes, many companies use women’s bodies in their ads as a sex symbol, but this company has taken it to a whole new level. American Apparel has been classified as one of the most provocative companies in terms of ads, using that title as a medal of honor rather than a harsh critique.  Many ads have even been banned in other countries for being too perverse and porn-like. An ad that was meant to sell high socks (shown below) featured a very young girl, wearing nothing but the socks, and was posed in what many would view as sex positions. I am always a proponent of glorifying the female body and embracing femininity, but when it comes to making an underage looking girl look vulnerable and used just to sell socks, that’s where I draw the line.

Moving deeper into the company’s inner workings, the management of American Apparel has been less than clean in their practices. The recently ex-CEO, Dov Charney is one of the most smarmy businessmen in the trade. He was responsible for this company for far too long, most likely one of the reasons for it’s now bankrupt state.  There have been many lawsuits against him for sex scandals with employees, including the shocking allegation of  keeping one of his female employee against her will as a sex slave. With the ads already portraying mistreatment of women, this just reinforces the misogyny riddled through the company.

The ad below with my name on it really makes me angry. I’m obviously not the tiny young blonde pictured in the advertisement, but I just as well could be. “Sophie” looks vulnerable, scantily clad, and almost right out of a porn film. This ad is just one of many that degrades girls and women and American Apparel has produced thousands just like it. As cute as their clothes may be, it’s just too hard for me to spend money on a company that could turn my dollars into sexist ads and paychecks for corrupt CEO’s and higher-ups. If it turns out that American Apparel gets shut down for good, I won’t be mourning the company in the slightest. As cute as those tennis skirts are, I’ll wait for their inventory to hit the thrift stores in the years to come.

photo courtesy of americanapparel.com