You may have seen an image of a dress that has been circulating online for more than a week and has inspired a trending hashtag and fierce debate on social media.
That same dress beat the Internet black and blue as many debated over what color they saw. Some of your friends may have seen white and gold as they peered at the garment, while others saw blue and black.
The Salvation Army is seeing an opportunity to use that viral pop culture phenomenon to inform the public of domestic abuse and has created a PSA.
“Why is it so hard to see black and blue?” reads the tag line for the new ad, which features a blond woman, covered in bruises, laying on her side wearing a gold and white version of the dress.
“The only illusion is if you think it was her choice. One in six women are victims of abuse. Stop abuse against women,” it continues.
The South African branch of the Salvation Army launched the campaign and transmitted the message via the group’s Twitter account.
Jackie Cole, one of the top eight females in this season’s American Idol reality TV show, wore a version of the dress on stage during her performance Thursday night.
While the judges of the show weren’t impressed by her performance, they made sure to weigh in on what color they thought the dress was.
“I see blue and black,” said Ryan Seacrest, as Jennifer Lopez agreed. Keith Urban saw red and pink and Harry Connick Jr. quipped, “I see a hot guy holding a cell phone.”