Timberland’s Black History Month Campaign and Sneakerheads Who Complain About BHM Collections

Timberland launched a project called From The Root in honor of Black History Month.  Entirely envisioned and produced by Black creatives… led by Black owned/women-led advertising shop CHÉ Creative, and brought to life in collaboration with Director Dalia Dias, Executive Producer DAPS from CR8TIVE ROW, Author and Narrator Jahleel Coleman of 13th & Create, and Wardrobe Stylist AmiraaVee.

Creatively, it centers on a beautiful anthem film — an emotional ode to the Black community that connects generations of family in the backdrop of nature in Philly.

The film is also highlighting and supporting five amazing non-non-profits.

Complaining Sneakerheads and the Death of Black History Month Campaigns

Sneakerheads who attack these campaigns, which are typically led by Black folks, you need to hear that your complaints are harmful in the same way that White folks who don’t want to hear about race is damaging. Is it cool to conflate a sneaker collection to racism? Not really, but this is serious business. I’m not saying don’t speak out about crappy BHM collections. I am saying consider every aspect and recognize that brands will use your voice to avoid providing future opportunities.

Sneaker culture contributes to marketing and influencer decisions made by brands. Companies like Nike, adidas and New Balance all listen to the communities that prop up the media and hype aspect of sneakers. In the last five to ten years as social media has become dominant, the impact of sneaker culture has become more prominent. At the same time, Black History Month campaigns became a standard collection for these brands. Over the years these campaigns have faced considerable pushback. Leaders in sneaker media ripped apart Nike’s last attempt at Black History and continue to do so in Twitter dialogue. adidas is so afraid of the pushback they have abandoned the concept altogether. I hit New Balance so hard one year, because I didn’t ask the right questions and said it was commodifying the culture, New Balance didn’t even attempt to roll out a Black History Month collection in an significant way. I’m not saying I stopped them, but I didn’t help.

BUT!!!!! sneaker social media isn’t a reason for brands to back off and stop. Brands need to double down because although it isn’t the responsibility of the sports brands to educate, when the majority of sponsored athletes are Black, it IS the responsibility of the brands to educate. Brands can’t have it both ways. You can’t use Kawhi Leonard, Dame Lillard, and Kevin Durant to elevate and then avoid dialogue on race at Black History Month because fans on social don’t understand what it takes to create these campaigns. Brands have to do the work at all costs because this is how some White folks view supporting Black people. Under Armour’s 2022 BHM Campaign was brilliant, but White people on social are all over their posts spouting ignorance:

This year the only sneaker brand to really promote a Black History Month Collection is Under Armour and the Timberland video and concept above. Both companies built beautiful campaigns with some of their Black employees. Here is why the complaints from sneaker culture are problematic. The complaints tend to condemn because the brand gets the design of the shoes wrong. The brand makes a wack sneaker. Consider adidas’s removing their Black History Month sneaker due to backlash.

When Black design and marketing leads lose the opportunity to shine, it may be the only moment within what are primarily White companies for them to shine. Should it be this way? No, but the reality is the sneaker brands we love have the same issues as society, Blacks are in limited numbers at these jobs, but to understand why there aren’t as many Blacks, we can’t fall back simply on nepotism and White privilege. Sneaker companies’ lack diversity at a very surface level; sneaker brands are located in the Whitest cities in the U.S. Most of the sneaker companies are in:

Portland, Oregon

Boston, Massachusetts:

Here is the issue with White cities, and these may seem trivial, where does a brother or sister get their hair cut or done? In the Black community, hair care is therapy. Black barbers are problem solvers and confidants. Black hair salons are social clubs for sisters. When a city lacks Black-owned restaurants, Black-owned businesses, churches and clubs, the people in those places can feel lack of attachment and a lack of identity. This is a serious issue. Isolation kills careers.

When White people respond to Black culture negatively, as in the Facebook ad for Under Armour’s Black History Month, it can lead to pushback by employees who don’t agree with one month of celebration. This leads to Black folks leaving those jobs especially when sneaker culture rips apart BHM collections. In some instances ripping apart BHM collections is right because they are bad, but the unfortunate aspect is it verifies for White folks who didn’t want the campaigns for Black history, that these things shouldn’t be done.

I listed city demographics because I also want to explain that hiring practices are typically based on location. Companies can’t hire from small talent pools. The great thing about Covid is hiring practices are changing. Brands who have abandoned Black History Month Collections, in the upcoming years, won’t be able to hide behind demographics and location. The workforce at companies should become more diverse with more remote opportunities.

I have to temper this expectation. Jobs throughout the spectrum at sneaker brands require the appropriate education. Look up the racial breakdown of any School of Design and you’ll find that Blacks are almost always disproportionate to their numbers in society. Before angry White folks get offended and say, “Well, schools don’t need to reflect the population, they need to reflect the best students,” even with financial assistance and income based tuition, Black households can’t afford the additional costs of design schools. More important, when Blacks do attend college they do so with the burden of debt and the burden of family attached. If my parents didn’t attend college, it’s very difficult for me to attend college. I experienced this problem. I didn’t go to college until after I was in the military. Black education is a completely different struggle. Black folks tend to do more social degrees to help their communities. They don’t pursue degrees in design or the arts. Black education is purposeful and not rooted in the pursuit of knowledge. It’s rooted in the pursuit of a better life and becoming a beacon for their communities. These burdens are compounded by the fact that when a Black person attends college they carry the family with them. All of the families’ dreams and hopes are pinned onto that graduate. The most educated person in a Black family becomes the resource, just as the most economically stable person in the Black family becomes the resource. To understand how this shapes Black folks, look at this link from Brookings on success, “high- and middle-income Black families are more likely than their white counterparts to be called upon to assist family members and neighbors.” The jobs in the sneaker industry are shaped by a combination of factors and it would take a book to explain, but for White folks mad that Black folks get an opportunity to shine, stop being angry and learn. For sneakerheads angry that the designs aren’t awesome, usually a young team of Black designers are getting a chance to deliver, think about that.

This year there aren’t a lot of Black History Month campaigns. Sneaker culture failed to understand the assignment. The goal isn’t to tear down the work of brands, it’s to inform, but in order to inform, sneaker culture has to understand what’s at stake. Sneaker companies are primarily filled with White employees, especially in critical positions. A Black History Month Collection can isolate and cause dissension. White people don’t want to hear how bad they messed up Black folks. No one wants to hear about how shitty they treat/treated other humans. No one wants to hear that they can’t expect Black success based on the exceptions (people like me who earned degrees and got out of poverty), to be the norm. Black History Month is an incredible opportunity to elevate engagement and introduce information not taught in schools. Timberland is a company I attacked at one point as co-opting Black culture and failing to hire Black employees when the company can rely on the Wheat Timberland like Nike relies on White Air Force 1s. When I aimed at Timberland, I was educated by the people there and I learned of the things the company has been doing to improve their shortcomings with Black employees and I learned they were actively problem solving in Black and Brown communities. I learned. What I want White folks to do is be open to learning about the rich history of Black folks. Don’t be like the people flooding Under Armour’s ads. Sneaker culture, be thoughtful. Dope design is a bonus, the stories and the work are what matters.