An anti-Trump Republican group has released an ad that slut-shames his wife, Melania, Vox reports. While the fight against Trump is one plenty of people can get behind, blatant sexism isn’t the best strategy.
The ad, which features a nearly naked Melania Trump, uses a photo from a GQ shoot she did back in 2000. It reads: MEET MELANIA TRUMP. YOUR NEXT FIRST LADY. OR, YOU COULD SUPPORT TED CRUZ ON TUESDAY.
The ad was targeted at Mormons in Utah, who, while very conservative, don’t like Trump for his radical policies and ‘unchristian’ behavior. What’s perhaps most concerning about this ad is that it was released by a female Republican political strategist, Liz Mair, for the Super PAC Make America Awesome. Why is a powerful woman trying to tear down a candidate through his wife, a totally separate person?
Because Melania is so beautiful, many people don’t realize how accomplished she is. She studied architecture and design at the University of Ljubljana in Slovenia, speaks five languages, and heads her own jewelry and cosmetics lines, according to Vox.
The story of an accomplished woman being slut-shamed is all too familiar. The idea that her choice to pose naked makes her somehow less of a person is ridiculous—and it’s silly that her former modeling should somehow reflect on her husband’s politics, as terrible as those may be. It’s also worth noting that while Melania should support her husband, that doesn’t necessarily mean she has to agree with him. Plenty of couples have varying political opinions and that can be good and healthy for a relationship.
Mair told Vox that the ad is not slut-shaming Melania, but is rather pointing out that the picture “sends an implicit message of female subservience” because she looks vulnerable and is handcuffed to a briefcase. That excuse doesn’t really ring true, as you can barely tell there are handcuffs in the picture, and the ad’s still implying Melania’s photo shoot choices say something about Donald Trump’s governing abilities.
Ultimately this issue goes beyond politics. It’s about doing the right thing for women, and this ad is definitely not doing the right thing for women.