American Eagle, is it genes or jeans? Because to me it seems like it’s more than clothing. The “Sydney Sweeney Has Great Jeans” campaign for American Eagle Outfitters struck its audience with mixed signals. For those who haven’t seen it: the campaign makes a play on words, emphasizing actress Sweeney’s blue eyes and blonde hair. This rest is left up to the audience to interpret and, by the looks of it, it doesn’t look so great for American Eagle.

Many consumers have interpreted the campaign as an idealization of white supremacy and an overt form of discrimination against minority groups with different body types and skin color. Those consumers are right. I mean, wearing “great jeans” isn’t necessarily novel or an objectively good marketing concept. It’s bland. This seems more calculated than that, especially for a successful, nationwide company with more than enough resources to hire a decent marketing team. American Eagle leans into the soft, white look to give way for connotations of such. It’s even weirder that this advertisement features men’s jeans and was meant for a male audience. With this in mind, it only causes its consumers to wonder where the company’s morals and values lie.

At the height of the backlash, American Eagle broke their silence and responded to the criticism, saying that the campaign “is and always was about the jeans.” However, President Donald Trump’s endorsement of Sydney Sweeney and the campaign seems to extinguish the sincerity and honesty in their response. The tone-deaf nature of American Eagle has failed its customers. Foot traffic declined nine percent amid the aftermath of the Sweeney jeans campaign.

It’s more than just jeans, American Eagle. The clothes we wear are an outlet for self expression and are what define us. As a clothing brand, American Eagle should recognize that. In general, clothing brands should learn a lesson or two about gender and body inclusivity. Brands like SKIMS by Kim Kardashian have leaned into the importance of diversity, body types and all. Each campaign is representative of more than just one culture and celebrates it. Clothes hold cultural value, which is subjective to each individual. It’s not up to a clothing company to decide what is important and isn’t, just like how good “jeans” are subjective.

Gap doesn’t have to show off its great jeans to bring customers into the store. The global girl group, KATSEYE, was selected to be the face of the “Better in Denim” campaign. The campaign doesn’t focus on the physicality of the jeans, but rather the abstract idea of individualism and self-empowerment. For decades now, Gap has fed its consumers with iconic campaigns. Within the first three days of the campaign’s launch, it earned over 400 million views throughout all social media platforms. The Gap campaign gives us a throwback song, a viral dance on Tiktok and a movement of cultural impact. On the other hand, American Eagle’s campaign leaves a bad taste in the mouth.

At the end of the day, it is up to us who holds power and who doesn’t. In light of current political turmoil, being an active voice holds weight. Boycotting American Eagle can set that example. The clothes we wear represent our values. Think about the feminist movement and shift from dresses and skirts to the normalization of wearing pants, like jeans. That cultural and social collective matters, which is something that Sweeney and American Eagle seemed to miss. Discrediting the importance of such and not taking accountability for their actions is lousy and incompetent.

Diversity, inclusion and self-expression sells. Discrimination and the sexualization of women doesn’t.