Kim Kardashian has broken her silence over the controversial Balenciaga photo shoot that featured children posing with teddy bears in bondage.
“As a mother of four, I have been shaken by the disturbing images,” she said in a series of tweets. “The safety of children must be held with the highest regard and any attempts to normalize child abuse of any kind should have no place in our society — period.”
The outcry on social media over Kardashian’s silence was increasingly growing as The Kardashians star hadn’t made a public statement about the polemic surrounding the fashion brand she works with frequently.
“I have been quiet for the past few days, not because I haven’t been disgusted and outraged by the recent Balenciaga campaigns, but because I wanted an opportunity to speak to their team to understand for myself how this could have happened,” she explained.
Kardashian stated that she is “currently re-evaluating my relationship with the brand, basing it off their willingness to accept accountability for something that should have never happened to begin with — & the actions I am expecting to see them take to protect children.”
“I appreciate Balenciaga’s removal of the campaigns and apology. In speaking with them, I believe they understand the seriousness of the issue and will take the necessary measures for this to never happen again,” she added.
After the holiday photo shoot went viral, Balenciaga issued a statement apologizing for the campaign saying, “Our plush bear bags should not have been featured with children in this campaign. We have immediately removed the campaign from all platforms.”
In addition, their website featured a photo with documents about the US Supreme Court decision on child porn laws. Balenciaga would issue a second statement apologizing for “displaying unsettling documents” and claimed to be “taking legal action against the parties responsible for creating the set and including unapproved items” for their campaign.