In the commercial for laundry detergent , a young, presumably Chinese woman is loading her washing machine, when a young black man splattered in paint whistles at her from across the room.

After she calls him over, the two appear on the verge of a kiss, but she grabs the man and shoves him headfirst in to her washing machine. She stuffs him completely inside and sits on top of the machine as it goes.

When the load is done, the young woman smiles as she lifts the lid and a clean, presumably Chinese, man emerges from the machine.

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Chinese Brand Produces Contender For Most…

 

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The video set off a stream of criticism on the internet, but a blogger for the Shanghaiist explained it is part of China’s “traditional beauty standards valuing white skin.” Standards that most outsiders would view as decidedly racist.

“As any foreigner who has ever lived in China can attest, attitudes regarding race and skin color are often quite different here from back home,” he wrote. “Still even with prior experience, sometimes this country can leave you completely and utterly dumbfounded.”

What might be worse is the commercial is an almost identical ripoff of a controversial Italian commercial from a decade ago. However, in that commercial, the Italian man comes out black. The tagline was “Coloured is better.”