Wazzup Pilipinas!
"Huy nagviral yung ad niya, kaso parang nakakaoffend yung brand nya diba? Tara i-mass report natin"
It's the original caption daw that has caused some people to get angry. The spiciest flavor used to be called "Masarap Sapakin", and then the brand edited their post after all the ruckus online.
Witty or not, maraming naniniwala na hindi maganda na gawing joke at inormalize and pananakit ng babae o asawa. Imagine being a victim of domestic violence and seeing the ad.
Have you always thought na ang irksome ng terms na ""may sayad" , etc.? Do you agree that kind of language or jokes in that vein perpetuate that women just choose to be angry or act crazy for no reason?. Does it dismisses the possibility that the man- or other people for that matter, may have actually done something wrong to provoke that emotion? "Sayad" and "tinotopak" and similar terms make it out to be as if how women react or behave, bears no correlation to how she is treated. Are you or not a fan of how those terms trivialize women's emotions?
Look at the stuff women have to go through everyday. Smh. Have we becomed so desensitized that we don't see what's wrong anymore?
Women are literally saying the brand plays on how men dismiss and gaslight women, and here now are men dismissing and gaslighting women. the trash is just taking itself out.
Others believed that sexism shouldn't be cool and tolerated in 2020. Kung sasabihin ng isang ad ng, for example, washing machine
"Para sa mga nanay na nakapangasawa ng mga tatay na alagain, pampadali ng trabaho ang aming washing machine", wouldn't you all think it's unfair to assume all men are full grown babies?
However, inedit na yung caption. But it's important to call out problematic posts.
I think it's also "ill advised" but I wouldn't go so far as to report them. The company isn't trying to sell domestic violence, they are trying to sell toyo. In which case I think this is playful enough not to be taken offense with. Maybe just remove the part where it says sarap sapakin and they'll be fine.
I honestly see nothing very little wong with this. In fact I find it clever and funny. I have “topak”, “sayad” or “tililing”, and so?! Toyomansi with chili garlic lang po ito. There's too much political correctness these days, I don't fully agree with the name choice but just "chill."
Distasteful but I can also accept that it's just a joke. It's not my cup of tea, but I did find it witty enough for the masa audience it caters to. In the first place, this seems to be a small business that just happened to gain some virality. Tipong benta-benta with friends and friends of friends pa lang ang aim nila, hindi naman target magbenta sa supermarkets nationwide.
Alam ng mga mag asawa itong mga ito.they will say such things pero they wont do it..parang Assunta at Paolo lang. Show this to a housewife, tatawanan lang ito. Makaka-relate pa. Minsan kasi ok pa rin yung experience compared sa advertising 101 books.
Mas egregious pa yung usage nila ng bitmoji, that terrible type choice and placement, packaging quality in general...
There's a difference between this branding's poking fun at PMS temper tantrums, at yung Pepe something shirt brand some time ago. I wouldn't call something like this Toyo "hate speech" or promoting domestic violence... but if we are on a witch hunt, why not also hate on this other brand from Cebu? Zu Boh Ti TEA
I think this was done in jest and for brand recall and I think sisikat ito. Marami lang lately ang balat sibuyas. Get a life and see the bright side of things.
I think the branding was brilliant to put PINOY marriage culture into products. Besides, the name itself is "Toyo ni Misis" isn't the wife is getting aggravated so the wife gets the upper hand? I really don't see where the violence, etc in here.. Kinda OA.
Well, sige violence should not be tolerated both men & women.. I didn't see that part of "Sarap tirisin at sapakin" they should OMIT that part but the rest of the brand idea is ok.
It's funny how some people here repeatedly comment the "receipt post" for their edited post about levels of toyo and yet did not bother to understand their post or even share their apology post.
Hindi ako connected sa Toyo ni Misis pero gusto ko lang ibahagi ang side nila because I find it unfair po calling people to block and report the page of a starting business. Like uhmm, you can first message the page itself po for clarrifications or to tell your side (na I hope ginawa niyo po). Kasi I know how it's hard to start up a business (and to think na its not so big business. Chili oil business to be exact) then we start calling people to block and report it.
How can that be violence against women when its “Toyo ni Misis”? Di ba mas “violence against the man” ito dapat? Of course violence against anyone is not acceptable but we do get the point of this branding. Its similar to Solenn and Nico’s #bulliedhusbandsclub. I haven’t heard anyone complain about it and in fact it is adored by many. So maybe this is just a light hearted creative approach to the occassional and infamous “flare ups” by the women at home.
I don't see the connect to violence vs women but I do know that violence vs men IS super trivialized here and everywhere else. And I also know that mental abuse is virtually unheard of despite the fact it exists.
This trivialises both domestic abuse by men against women and vise versa. Am I the only one that sees the angry woman with a clenched fist?
So why the hell are we offended about one and not the other? On top of that, this trivialises verbal abuse, which happens to men more often. It's trivialised as "toyo ni misis" and taken as normal, but we all know it isn't.
End of day, the verbally abusive partner is just as bad as the physically abusive one and if anyone believes otherwise, then I challenge them to have their spirit crushed day-in and day-out by the words of someone who supposedly loves them.
While I don’t agree with the “sarap sapakin” joke, not everyone comes from the same background. Some things are more normal to others and I don’t think they meant any harm.
It doesn’t justify what they did (read that line twice pls before you bash me hahaha)
but it’s better to educate than try to tear them down.
They seem to be receptive and open to learning naman. (They also removed it and apologized) So let’s not crucify them for it. Let’s all try our best to be kind and help each other during this time.
It maybe offensive to some, it may not be to others. Gumanti na lang kayo at magbenta ng itlog na maalat at i-label nyo ng "Itlog ni Mister".
A lot of online businesses are popping up na rin since everyone is trying to find a source of income, pero yun nga not everyone is really knowledgable when it comes to proper marketing and whats ethical or what isn’t.
Is this the same as the saying that #AllLivesMatter? Isn’t this about flipping the coin? Is this about the REALITY that women are being gaslit into thinking they are unreasonable when moody/angry? Is it a trope that’s been ingrained in our culture? There is no saying “may toyo si mister.”
But it could also be never just a name or just chili. Name studies take time, and lazy names that draw on stereotypes, harassment, and other reasons that don’t draw from a place of good do not reflect the work of a copywriter. Plus, if you’re gunning for controversy, it’s going to be a forgettable name. The controversy will precede it.
BLM protests made this below happen:
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/aunt-jemima-brand-will-change-name-remove-image-quaker-says-n1231260
In this day and age, everyone feels fucking opinionated. Lahat na lang offended. Lahat na lang may issue. Ibang snowflake levels na talaga ang naabot ng mga tao sa mundo na toh. Haha. Grow up and get a life.
Lesson we can learn from this is we should at least ask for opinions/comments outside our circle too when crafting and posting captions concerning our brand, be it a start-up or an established one. Think (and consult) before we click. What’s witty, funny, and ok for us may not be the case for others.
But on the other hand, this would've been an interesting discussion if the OP was with objectivity, like for example... pointing out the use of "bitmoji" for their logo, but instead she chose to ask people to do a witch hunt with her against someone who's just trying to make ends meet during this pandemic.. which is a big "yikes" for me. We have a different cultural humor from the U.S which is why I think the branding message is just light-hearted in nature, but if she spent so much time in adapting the "woke culture" in twitter and "americanizing" herself then she might find the message very offending.
This marketing didn't come off as hate speech or anything violent to me. If anything, it could've been just done in jest, a simple dig at his wife for being so loud and aggressive with full permission from her. I've seen his apology post and his wife was actually in cahoots with him. I think this may come back to hunt the OP herself as this may constitute as cyberlibel due to her accusations of hate and violence without any hint of doubt or any inquisition.
Maybe we can agree to disagree. But maybe we can also be better on how we respond to each other.
At the end of the day, there are people who really are victims of abuse/violence.
And at the end of the day, there are people who depend on small businesses - especially now during this pandemic and crisis.
I really hope we can minimize this “cancel culture”. But at the same time, I hope we take time to listen and empathize too.
Critical thinking is important. But most of all, an open mind for healthy discussions.
FYI: These are accumulated statements put together from comments of netizens.
Ross is known as the Pambansang Blogger ng Pilipinas - An Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Professional by profession and a Social Media Evangelist by heart.
