The Standard Hotel Accused of Trivializing Violence Against Women

A new print campaign for New York's The Standard Hotel has been accused of advocating or trivializing violence against women. The ad, which appeared in DuJour shows a woman lying face down on the pavement with a suitcase atop her back.

The publisher of Make Me A Sammich was none too pleased with the campaign and wrote, "I need to point out for anyone not clear on the concept that by using violence against women for something as crass as attempting to lure people to your "boutique" hotel chain these companies are helping to perpetuate the cycle of violence. They are normalizing it--treating it as something trivial, not worth taking seriously. Treating it as a joke. That teaches everyone regardless of gender that violence against women is No Big Deal. These messages in our media teach women to expect violence and teach men prone to violence against women that what they do is socially acceptable."

To which The Standard responded, "The Standard advertisement utilized an image series created by the contemporary artist, Erwin Wurm. We apologize to anyone who views this image as insensitive or promoting violence. No offense or harm was intended. The Standard has discontinued usage of this image."

In other words, the hotel said nothing.