I received a document today, the form 990 (Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax) of the Candie's Foundation for the year 2009. I don't think anybody else in the blogophere has this information so far...
Neil Cole, Chairman and CEO of Candie's and its parent company, Iconix, sees no contradiction in promoting their products through ads showing highly sexualized young people while simultaneously promoting abstinence via the Foundation.
He defends the contradiction: “Just because you’re wearing high-heeled sexy shoes doesn’t mean you should have a baby.”
In 2001, under fire from critics who accused him of dressing high-schoolers like tarts, he established the Candie’s Foundation, which fights teen pregnancy. In 2009 he introduced the foundation’s new teen ambassador, Bristol Palin.
The Candie's Foundation would have much more credibility if they promoted comprehensive sex education alongside the message that young people should consider whether they're ready to be sexually active. Instead, their mission statement on their 990 form reads:
They repeat the same drivel three times on the form.
Bristol Palin had devastating consequences from her teenage pregnancy. In 2009 she was paid a really devastating amount of money:
This amount is not final, as the 990 is not complete yet. Candie's requested an extention to present the data for their annual Event to Prevent, so Bristol may be due some further devastation.
The Candie's Foundation is the charitable arm of the purveyors of sexy attire for teenagers that uses soft porn to market their products. It's just a handy way to generate tax free money by pretending to be against teenage sex. They decided to cover all bases...
Bristol appears to have developed a convincing image, very, very relevant in the context of sexual abstinence.
Candies and Bristol Palin are well matched. Hypocrisy, greed and gratuitous exploitation of young women while delivering conflicting messages is a profitable bond between them.
The 990 return may be viewed and downloaded HERE.
Please read previous posts about Candies.