Kim Kardashian Under Fire For Choosing To NOT Cut Ties With Balenciaga - 'It's Not Difficult To Draw The Line At Child Porn'

Amid Balenciaga's ongoing controversy, reality star Kim Kardashian is facing a social media onslaught for keeping up her relationship with the embattled clothing brand. Balenciaga came under fire last week when the company posted its campaign ads for the Spring/Summer 2023 collection and used children as its models.

The problem was not so much the appearance of the children as it was the props used in the video. They were made to carry stuffed animals that had on what looked like BDSM outfits. The campaign photos also notably featured legal documents on child pornography cases, which made it all the more scandalous. In response to the massive wave of criticism, Balenciaga took down the post and other previous Instagram pictures.

The luxury brand also released an apology to the public. Bella Hadid, who modeled for the company, previously took down her pictures of the shoot. Kardashian is the latest celebrity to call Balenciaga out; however, her comments were met with online criticism.

Read on to learn more.

Kardashian fans ask that the mother of four sever links with Balenciaga amid their campaign image controversy. In a Sunday post, Kardashian finally spoke up about the incident with Balenciaga, mentioning everything but her intention to leave the company.

In the post, the reality star declared that she was "disturbed" and "shaken" by the company's actions and said she was considering her relationship with the brand.

"I have been quiet for the past few days, not because I haven't been disgusted and outraged by the recent Balenciaga campaigns, but because I wanted an opportunity to speak to their team to understand for myself how this could have happened," the Skims owner wrote.

For the past years, the reality star has maintained a good relationship with Balenciaga and has been spotted in several of its luxury items on numerous occasions. Kardashian has also been featured in several campaigns for the brand in the past years.

Further in the post, Kardashian emphasized the importance of protecting children and that "any attempts to normalize child abuse of any kind should have no place in our society — period." She, however, commended the brand for its reaction to the criticism and expressed her belief that a similar situation would not repeat itself.

"I appreciate Balenciaga's removal of the campaigns and apology. In speaking with them, I believe they understand the seriousness of the issue and will take the necessary measures for this to never happen again," she wrote.

The business mogul concluded her post by saying that her relationship with Balenciaga was currently under re-evaluation. She explained that she might move forward with the brand depending on their future actions regarding protecting children.

Shortly after her statement online, Kardashian was seen in skimpy hot pants in an impromptu photoshoot. The image and its proximity to her post questioned her sincerity. Fans made several posts accusing the reality star of trying to wait for things to blow over and demanded that she cut ties with Balenciaga.

A comment read, "You can't be that outraged if you're going to continue to model for them. I applaud u for speaking up, but the fact that this even happened speaks volumes, and so publicly at that. Shame on Balenciaga and anyone who still supports them. Things like this don't deserve a second chance."

Another aggrieved fan wrote, "Delete this again and come back with the right statement. One that says 'I am cutting ties with Balenciaga due to the disturbing images in their campaign involving children.' The only statement that should have been made."

Youtuber Blair White commented that the billionaire is "full of sh*t" for not cutting ties with the brand completely. She wrote, "Cut ties completely or you're full of sh*t, Kim. You are very obviously kicking the ball down the road so you can continue your business relationship with them once this blows over. It's not difficult to draw the line at child porn, and your inability to do so is telling."

After the backlash, Balenciaga took down all its Instagram posts, including those featuring children and the poorly hidden US Supreme Court child pornography case. The brand also issued an apology where they promised to find the people behind the ad and penalize them.

"We apologize for displaying unsettling documents in our campaign. We take this matter very seriously and are taking legal action against the parties responsible for creating the set and including unapproved items for our Spring 23 campaign photo shoot," the statement read.

"We strongly condemn abuse of children in any form. We stand for children's safety and well-being."

Supermodel Bella Hadid, who is heavily affiliated with Balenciaga, is yet to release a statement; however, she quietly took down pictures of the campaign. The photographer behind the photos, Gabriele Galimberti, also released a statement explaining that he didn't have a say in the creative process.