An online clothing company is under fire for sexualizing a 9-year-old boy. Brandon Hilton, owner of House of Mann, tweeted an image of the child in full drag and a sequined onesie.
“9 year old drag superstar Lactatia is our new HOUSE OF MANN covergirl,” Hilton tweeted on Jan. 6.
The nine-year-old boy first became known to the public in September 2017, when he appeared on ITV’s ‘This Morning’ with his mother, wearing a pink wig, makeup, and a dress.
“I think it’s extremely important to allow your children to really tap into their creative side, his mother said.
Hilton, owner of the erotic clothing online boutique, laughed off threats and defended the image on his Twitter page.
“If you can’t handle a kid in a sequin onesie, maybe the future isn’t for you!” Hilton tweeted in response to critics who accused him of normalizing pedophilia.
Hilton, who is openly gay, also posted Twitter’s reply to complaints from multiple Twitter users.
“We have investigated the reported content and could not identify any violations of the Twitter Rules,” Twitter’s statement read in part.
The controversy erupted on Twitter.com 2 days before H&M clothing was criticized for an advertisement featuring a black boy wearing a hoodie with the words “Coolest Monkey in the Jungle”.
Angry rappers, including T.I., Sean Combs and Snoop Dogg posted Photoshopped memes of the offensive H&M ad on Instagram.com on Monday.