MAC gives women of Juarez, Mexico an apology and promises donations

Cosmetics giant, MAC says it is donating all its profits from its Rodarte MAC makeup line to victims in Juarez, Mexico. Consumers and bloggers blasted MAC after it named some of its fall makeup line with names such as "Juarez", "Ghost town" and "Factory".


This didn't only upset me, but plenty of Wise Latinas around the country. How could they think of such a insensitive marketing plan when for decades women and girls who work in the factories of Juarez have been murdered to or from work.

MAC is renaming the makeup line and it says the profits will go to "newly created initiatives to raise awareness and provide on-the-ground support to the women and girls in Juarez."

Part of MAC press release states:

...M•A•C and Rodarte are deeply sorry that this makeup collection was so offensive to the people of Mexico and concerned global citizens.

This announcement follows a meeting last evening in Mexico City with M•A•C executives and Mexican government officials, including CONAVIM (Comisión Nacional Para Prevenir y Erradicar la Violencia Contra las Mujeres/National Commission to Prevent and Eradicate Violence Against Women.)

During the meeting, held at the Mexican Ministry of Foreign Affairs, this collective group committed to working together on the overall direction of the new initiative to help the women and girls of Juarez and to raise global awareness of their plight. M•A•C executives reiterated their deep regret and reinforced that it was never M•A•C’s or Rodarte’s intent to minimize the suffering of the women and girls of Ciudad Juarez.

According to MAC, it has 150 employees in Mexico. The press release was issued with Rodarte, the high end fashion label owned by Kate and Laura Mulleavy. The sisters have yet to come out with their own personal statements about "their inspiration" that started this marketing nightmare for MAC. I'm hoping they are going to go back to Mexico and learn more about their Latino roots.

Kudos to MAC for listening to its consumers and now hopefully making a difference in the lives of the women in Juarez, Mexico. We'll have to see what happens next. Here's the story published in "El Universal" a major newspaper in Mexico City.