The Rape Crisis Network Ireland (RCNI) has lodged a formal complaint against an advertising campaign for Hunky Dory crisps.
The complaint, to the Advertising Standards Authority, was made against a campaign featuring women in revealing tops playing rugby under straplines such as “Are you staring at my crisps?” and “Tackle these”.
The RCNI claimed the posters were sending out messages that may condone or have the effect of encouraging unsafe actions.
“These posters add to attitudes and behaviours that make Ireland a place where the casual and everyday sexual assault of women is permitted and unchallenged,” RCNI director Fiona Neary said.
She called on the Largo Foods campaign, which cost €500,000, to be withdrawn immediately saying “it is wholly unacceptable that a corporation should not only condone these harmful attitudes but indeed use them as leverage to promote a product”.
