Honey Pot's Commercial Giving A Shout Out to Black GIRLS Causes Backlash

Femine-care brand The Honey Pot released a new commercial Monday promoting their line of products at Target. The commercial, featuring the brand’s CEO Bea Dixon, was met with online backlash for her final statement in the 20 second clip. Watch below:

“The reason why it’s so important for Honey Pot to do well, is so that the next black girl that comes up with the great idea she can have a better opportunity. That means a lot to me.” That sentence struck a negative chord with some women, claiming that Dixon, and the brand overall— promoted racism for calling out black girls specifically.

It's important to note that there was no backlash about the fact that Dixon is a female entrepreneur creating products exclusively for women. So why was there retaliation when it came to Dixon exclusively referencing her experience as an African-American?

Dixon is speaking from her personal experience of being a black female entrepreneur. Three different words and three different communities she finds herself in, that has had influence on her professional journey. She has the right to call attention to all three identities that continue to be marginalized in the business space. Each for distinct reasons. Gendered, racial and professional factors that hold their own historical, social and emotional measure. So who is to say that Dixon’s experience as an African-American should not be as accentuated as much as her experience as a woman and a business person?

The empowerment of one group of women does not advocate the erasure of another. Feminism is intersectional and Dixon’s experience as a black female entrepreneur is not belittling the experience of other female entrepreneurs who may be white, Latinx, Indigenous, Asian, or in the LGBTQ+ community. She is just speaking from her personal history and hopes others with her background (whether that be black, female, or black AND female) will be given the same opportunity she fought so long for.

The social media users angered by the Target commercial because they could not personally relate to Dixon’s identity as an African-American led them to invade the TrustPilot website with negative reviews about the brand. These reviews are not based in fact or experience about the actual product, but were driven by opinion and emotion.

TrustPilot took to Twitter to state that they will be checking the validity of the recent influx of reviews to ensure they comply with their site standards, which is to review products.

It’s important to note that the backlash is related to the commercial and not the actual product. None of the products are explicitly marketed for only black women.