PHILADELPHIA — For over 20 years, the fashion line Suddenly Fem has been serving the transgender community with fashion forward clothes designed for trans women. Suddenly Fem (Crossdresser.com) specializes in clothes, padding, and undergarments for transgender women as well as fashionable crossdressers.
When the online and catalog based company tried to advertise through Facebook in summer 2015, in order to reach transgender customers, their ads and content were rejected as “adult” by the social media website.
After the first “not approved” advertisement, VP of Marketing and Production Tyler DeSouza redesigned the content. “There were some possible sexy poses on the page and ad, so I removed and replaced with other pictures that I knew would be quite acceptable. I must have placed at least 6 to 8 ads over this time, each not approved, wondering what needed to be changed.”
Facebook claimed that the ads were “rejected because [they don’t] follow our advertising guidelines. Ads may not promote the sale or use of adult products or services (ex: sexual enhancement products, seduction techniques, adult clubs and shows).”
However, none of these products or services are offered, sold, or promoted by the company. No content within the advertisements or on the Suddenly Fem website violated these guidelines.
In early August, the company adjusted ad copy and content to be as conservative as possible, so when an ad containing only a headshot of a transgender model was rejected, it seemed that the ads were rejected not because of their content, but possibly because of the community they represented. Misunderstanding and discrimination against the transgender community is still widespread, even with media figures such as Laverne Cox and Caitlyn Jenner receiving national attention.
On August 6, DeSouza opened a new case with Facebook over the rejection of the company’s advertisements. His case stressed that the company sells only clothing, jewelry, bras, and shapewear to transgender women—and that the company does not sell any adult products or depict any sexual imagery.
Later that day, Facebook apologized for disapproving the advertisements. A member of the Facebook ad team said, “It appears your ads were mistakenly disapproved, and we’ve re-reviewed and approved them. I’m sorry for any inconvenience this caused.”
Facebook’s policies towards transgender users have received both praise and criticism recently. In early 2014, Facebook allowed users to select from a wide variety of gender descriptors, ranging from transgender to genderqueer, instead of the limited male or female options.
Although there is still a long way to go for transgender equality, it’s reassuring that companies such as Suddenly Fem are able to have a dialogue with Facebook and reach an understanding. With greater visibility and education about gender identity, misunderstandings such as these will hopefully become a thing of the past. As society progresses, it is important that large corporations such as Facebook treat transgender shoppers and retailers with equal recognition and respect.
