Dove came under fire after it uploaded a controversial advertisement that featured women of different color. The now-deleted video opened with an African-American woman taking off her brown shirt and transitioned to reveal a white woman wearing a beige top followed by another woman wearing a desert sand shirt.
The three-second campaign video for Dove body wash immediately spread like a wildfire through internet backlash before the company could take it down.
Most people dubbed the video racist and bizarre for a group that claims to promote diversity through their products.
Dove apologizes for controversial advert
In an official statement released in the wake of the issue, the company explained that the controversial video was meant to convey that their body wash product is for women of different nationalities and ethnicities. It added that Dove aimed at celebrating the diversity of real beauty before the company acknowledged their mistake for failing to deliver this message through the short clip.
The Unilever-owned company guaranteed that they have taken down the controversial campaign and promised to look into the issue to find out why the video was approved for broadcast.
Dove ended its statement with an apology to those who took offense on the issue.
The internet fires up over 'racist' campaign
But despite the apology, many consumers have threatened to boycott Dove for its racist advertisement. Some of these people took to social media to campaign against the company, while others saw nothing wrong in the controversial advert.
Several celebrities have also spoken up to call out Dove for its offensive ad. Among them was Danielle Brooks who wrote a lengthy reaction to the issue. The "Orange is the New Black" alum described the campaign ad "disturbing" and admitted that the video has made her ponder the moment she saw it on social media.
"Dove, you want me to believe that using your soap will turn my skin into that of a white woman?" Danielle Brooks asked.
"No — that can't be it. You want me to believe being black isn't clean? You want me to believe that black [is equal to] dirt and white [is equal to] purity and using your soap will make me clean? Got it."
The 28-year-old actress went on and asked if Dove was sorry for the negative publicity, the potential damage by the issue or if the company was regretful that they have created a racist piece to show to the public.