McDonald's turned its famous golden arches logo upside down as a tribute to women on International Women's Day and people are most definitely not loving it.
The fast food giant made the gesture on its website and across its US Twitter, Instagram and Facebook accounts and at a restaurant in Lynwood, California, on Thursday 8th March, sparking a wave of criticism on social media from people who aren't impressed by the idea of "WcDonalds".
Today, we flip our Golden Arches to celebrate the women who have chosen McDonald's to be a part of their story, like the Williams family. In the U.S. we’re proud to share that 6 out of 10 restaurant managers are women. https://t.co/6z88OhjXpO pic.twitter.com/hXfOi3wWQf
— McDonald's (@McDonalds) March 8, 2018
McDonald's is celebrating #InternationalWomensDay by flipping its golden arches https://t.co/biYp1ZduyT pic.twitter.com/oUoEjcizNf
— CNN (@CNN) March 8, 2018
"We recognise the extraordinary contribution of women. From employees and franchisees, to suppliers and community partners, to our customers, we are inspired by your strength and leadership," the company wrote on a special International Women's Day page on its website, adding that six out of 10 of all of its restaurant managers in the US are women.
"So, in honour of women everywhere, we're flipping our iconic logo for International Women's Day. Today, we celebrate you," it continued. While the gesture may have been well intentioned, judging by the social media reaction it has backfired spectacularly.
Many people have lambasted the multi-national for co-opting a day meant for honouring women's achievements and pushing for further progress towards gender equality, describing the stunt as a shining example of corporate-friendly "McFeminism". (But, of course, McDonald's is far from the only company that has used the day as a springboard for marketing itself.)
When I started using the term "McFeminism" to refer to the corporate-friendly, HRC fan sort of feminism, I didn't expect McDonalds to actually become one of the biggest examples of the phenomenon 🤦🏻♀️
— Thorne Melcher 🌸 (@ExistentialEnso) March 8, 2018
Today, as McDonald's turns its arches upside down to co-opt #InternationalWomensDay, we're delivering the messages of their women workers who, in 2016, took action nationwide to demand an end to rampant sexual harassment on the job https://t.co/NffDnrfFpO #FightFor15 #IWD2018 pic.twitter.com/RbHKBcCaW0
— Fight For 15 (@fightfor15) March 8, 2018
If @McDonalds actually cares about women—how bout:
— Qasim Rashid, Esq. (@MuslimIQ) March 8, 2018
•Paying a livable wage
•Providing healthcare to your employees
•Hiring Women/minorities in leadership. (Women/Munorities are 70% of your employees but only 35% of your exec team)
A mere “W?”
Sorry, Im not exactly “lovin it” https://t.co/4FEqNahL0w
This is hilarious. Keep your symbolic gesture about women's rights and pay your female (and male) workers a living wage. #McFeminism https://t.co/Cg5as2lkNa
— Secular Talk (@KyleKulinski) March 7, 2018
McDonalds: In celebration of women we are flipping the arches upside down.
— bogwolf (@truebe) March 7, 2018
Or you could give your employees better benefits.
McD: Look it's a W!
Maybe a living wage? Better family leave? A career path forward in the face of automation?
McD: The W stands for women.
mcdonalds is flipping the arches on their signs to celebrate international women's day
— vagina uterus haver XX (@shoe0nhead) March 8, 2018
all other days it stood for MEN https://t.co/TRrgCYWVQZ
Others just straight up mocked it. Some slammed it as evidence of an incompetent marketing team, while others drew parallels with a SpongeBob SquarePants plotline.
“Hamburglar with breasts” crossed out on a whiteboard at McDonald’s HQ
— pixelated boat [ASMR] binaural ~4 hours~ (@pixelatedboat) March 8, 2018
all time I thought it was revolutionary for me to eat McDonald's, since it starts with an "M" and M is for Man. Today, I finally feel accepted. WcDonald for me. WcDonald for all lady. ✊ pic.twitter.com/BRuYoPaNhw
— eve peyser (@evepeyser) March 8, 2018
Probably sucks to be The Onion these days with so much competition https://t.co/oUqiZyQwZQ
— Haley Byrd (@byrdinator) March 7, 2018
McDonald's is obviously flipping it's arches for one reason.https://t.co/yJCSn566kc pic.twitter.com/NDt9RcuZ57
— Ethan Barton (@ethanrbarton) March 7, 2018
But McDonald's did show evidence of some self awareness in relation to gender issues. In an essay by its global chief diversity officer, Wendy Lewis, published on Medium on 6th March, the company admitted it wasn't perfect when it comes to women.
"We know we have work to do and are committed to listening and working with others across business, government and our communities to improve and make stories like Yazmin’s [a McDonald's manager named in the article] in particular the norm, not the exception," Lewis wrote. When that happens, we'll celebrate.
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