‘I don’t know what’s happening’: Kim Kardashian opens up about Balenciaga scandal
Steff Thomas
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Reality star Kim Kardashian is finally opening up further about the controversial Balenciaga ad that featured young children holding teddy bears in BDSM-inspired clothing, which some compared to child pornography.
“With the Balenciaga thing … everyone was like, ‘Why aren’t you speaking out? Why aren’t you speaking out?’” Kardashian said Monday on Angie Martinez’s IRL podcast.
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“And I’m like, ‘Wait. I’m not in this campaign. I don’t know what’s happening. Let me take a minute to, like, research this,’” she added.
Kardashian, 42, has worked with the brand for years and said at the time that she “wanted an opportunity to speak to their team to understand for myself how this could have happened.”
During Monday’s interview, the Skims founder said she was “shaken by the disturbing images.”
“Any attempts to normalize child abuse of any kind should have no place in our society — period,” Kardashian said.
“But because I didn’t say, ‘F*** you, Balenciaga. That’s it,’ people got mad at that … so they’re mad if I don’t speak out. They’re mad if I do speak out,” she told the host.
Kardashian, the ex-wife of beleaguered musician Kanye West, said she couldn’t have been more clear that she found the ads just as “disturbing” as those criticizing her for not condemning the brand immediately and publicly.
“I couldn’t have been more clear on, this is horrifying, this is disturbing,” Kardashian said of the ads. “[But] unless they heard what they wanted to hear, it’s like f*** you, you’re canceled.”
Critics, such as former Fox News host Megyn Kelly, have blasted the Kardashians star, who has been a walking billboard for Balenciaga, for not disassociating with the brand.
Balenciaga reportedly sued the production company for one of the ads and removed the campaign amid the backlash.
Kardashian has also allegedly turned down a future campaign with the brand, according to reports.
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She said she rarely pays attention to social media, and like other attacks against her or her family, she is taking it all in stride.
“No matter what, you can’t win. But I’ll still be me,” she said.