The parents of the child model at the centre of the H&M race row have admitted their fears over how it will affect their young son as they reveal they've moved out of their home because of the global backlash triggered by the campaign.Terry Mango, of Stockholm, Sweden, and her partner Frank Odhiambo have spoken about the outrage that greeted an image of their five-year-old son Liam wearing a jumper emblazoned with the phrase 'coolest monkey in the jungle'.Appearing on ITV's This Morning on Monday, Terry who initially raised eyebrows when she said critics should 'get over it' and Frank said they have an 'obligation to protect' their children.'The most unfortunate thing is that my son is very young and there's a lot that's going to come with this and that really shakes me a little bit,' Frank said on the show, before adding that Liam is unaware of the controversy around the picture. 'He believes people love him for his modelling job,' Terry added.
The parents called for their privacy as a family to be respected, admitting they haven't had a 'normal family life' since the furore broke, and have even had to leave their home in search of respite from the debate.Frank said: 'As much as people have gotten involved in this for me, it's very important to understand that me and Terry, we have a son, we have other children in the home that we are raising and we have an obligation to protect our children. 'To me if we had a way to take this off I would take it off today. The most unfortunate thing is that my son is very young and there's a lot that's going to come with this and that really shakes me a little bit.'Terry said that Liam believes the interest has been generated by his modelling skills, rather than any controversy around the picture itself.
She explained: 'He's seen the pictures and he's seen pictures online. He believes people love him for his modelling job and that he's cool and confident in his job.'Manchester United footballer Romelu Lukaku, basketball player LeBron James and music mogul P Diddy are among the celebrities who slammed the advert as shoppers called for a boycott of the chain. Meanwhile, musician The Weeknd, who has collaborated and modelled for H&M said he was cutting all ties with the retailer.The outrage prompted H&M to remove the image from its UK and US websites, and the retailer issued a statement saying it was 'deeply sorry'. Terry initially raised eyebrows when she told people to 'get over it' when she discovered that her son's image was at the centre of the controversy.
Speaking on the chat show today, the mother stood by her original argument and insisted that people should respect the fact she does not believe the image is racist. She said: 'I know what racism is. I have had racist remarks directed at me firsthand, even with the name monkey, I've been called a monkey before and my reaction was the same is the world is reacting to me right now. 'To put a t-shirt and the word monkey with racism... maybe that is not my way of looking at it, I'm just looking at... Liam, a black, young boy modelling a t-shirt with the world monkey on it. Everybody should respect different opinions based on racism.'
The image advertising the £7.99 jumper was removed from H&M's US and UK websites shortly after news of the outrage broke.The retailer quickly issued a statement apologising to 'anyone it may have offended'.However, the image was still shared thousands of times on social media and drew comments from dozens of high-profile critics.Even those who doubted the brand was being derogatory admitted there should have been more aware of how the image could be perceived.
The campaign group Models Of Diversity, which pushes for more diversification across the industry, said H&M should be 'ashamed'. The brand also took to Instagram to express further apology, it said: 'We understand that many people are upset about the image of the children's hoodie. We, who work at H&M, can only agree. 'We're deeply sorry that the picture was taken and we also regret the actual print.'Therefore, we've not only removed the image from our channels but also the garment from our product offering.'
Stars speaking out against H&M
The H&M image and the surrounding controversy quickly went viral after it was shared on Twitter.Thousands of social media users criticised the advert and celebrities soon joined in the calls for an apology. Manchester United footballer Romelu Lukaku posted an edited picture of the boy on his Instagram page with 'Black is Beautiful' on the hoody instead.
He then wrote: 'You're prince soon to be a king. Don't let anybody tell you different... #blackexcellence.' NBA star LeBron James has also slammed H&M for the advert. He fumed on social media: 'U got us all wrong! And we ain't going for it! Straight up!.'Enough about y'all and more of what I see when I look at this photo. I see a Young King!! The ruler of the world, an untouchable Force that can never be denied!'
'We as African Americans will always have to break barriers, prove people wrong and work even harder to prove we belong but guess what, that's what we love because the benefits at the end of the road are so beautiful!' .US rapper Pusha T and singer The Weeknd have also lashed out at H&M vowing never to work with or buy from the chain again. Pusha T posted an edited version of the advert with a crown on the model's head and hoody, with 'King of the Wold' in bold type.He also wrote the caption: 'Accurate. Never shopped with you ever... not even for Tshirts @hm'
Chris Classic, an artist from New York is thought to have started the creative protest against H&M.