Born in the USA: Is American Eagle really using whiteness to sell jeans?

Criticised by some for promoting the language of eugenics but defended by others for killing ‘woke advertising’, the much-loved teen denim brand is causing a stir

American Eagle is a US-founded fashion brand that sells jeans, shrunken “baby” T-shirts and cropped sweatshirts to predominantly tween and teenage girls. On TikTok, users gush about their clothes in outfit-of-the-day posts or shopping hauls. This week, however, the brand found itself facing backlash over its new campaign, starring the 27-year-old White Lotus and Euphoria actor Sydney Sweeney, in which critics are alleging American Eagle uses the language of eugenics to try to sell denim.

The campaign depicts Sweeney in a denim shirt and baggy jeans provocatively posing as a male voice says: “Sydney Sweeney has great jeans.” In one now-viral clip, Sweeney is filmed pasting a campaign poster on to a billboard. The poster’s text reads “Sydney Sweeney has great genes jeans”. In another video that has since been removed from American Eagle’s social media channels, Sweeney, who has blond hair and blue eyes, says: “Genes are passed down from parents to offspring, often determining traits like hair colour, personality, and even eye colour. My jeans are blue.”