Quvenzhané Wallis has become the most sought-after child actress thanks to her leading role as the first black Annie in a remake of the legendary musical and hit film. Wallis's performance has earned her a Golden Globe nomination, not to mention a nice, fat paycheck. Target has attached itself to this successful film and has launched a limited Annie clothing collection for young girls. Some see it as a problem that the lead girl in the marketing campaign is a young, white model.
A petition has been started on change.org, requesting that the retailer change its ads and then issue Wallis an apology. The actress attended Target's launch party wearing items from the new Annie collection to promote it, but then was replaced at the last minute and her fans have taken offense.
"Your recent Annie ads and in-store displays depicts [sic] a misleading depiction of the movie as it shows a Caucasian young lady [as] opposed to the star of the film- Quvenzhané Wallis. Though the model is quite professional, she does not speak to the relevance of the movie or main character. When the original Annie came out, everything was about Aileen Quinn or a character/person that emulated her...why not now Target? If you can show it online, show it in ALL of your stores with multiple signage with different girls not one!
"Although Annie is a fictitious character, there has been a major uproar from protesters stating that they would not support the movie due to the star being African American. Is [this] the reason why Target maliciously hid Quvenzhané Wallis or refused to use an African American girl to depict Annie in their ads?"
Do Wallis's supporters make a valid point? The Annie line is only in stores for another week, so pulling it might be unlikely. But should Target issue the young star an apology for potentially disrespecting her? Tell us your thoughts in the comments section below.
