State of Illinois
92nd General Assembly
Legislation

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92_SR0170

 
                                              LRB9209105XXyyA

 1                          SENATE RESOLUTION

 2        WHEREAS, Abercrombie & Fitch ("ANF") has been a  sporting
 3    goods clothing retailer since 1892; and

 4        WHEREAS,  Michael  Jeffries  became ANF's Chief Executive
 5    Officer in 1992, and began to change the company's focus; and

 6        WHEREAS, 16 of ANF's 261 retail stores are  in  Illinois;
 7    and

 8        WHEREAS,  ANF's  targeted  consumer  groups  are  youths,
 9    teens, and college-age young adults; and

10        WHEREAS,  ANF  admittedly  promotes a lifestyle, not just
11    clothing; and

12        WHEREAS,  Past  ANF  Quarterly  catalogues  have   mocked
13    religion  and  have featured full and partial male and female
14    nudity; casual drug  use  and  underage  drinking;  narrative
15    accounts of oral sex, sexual intercourse, and sadomasochistic
16    abuse; and methods of youth sex with the elderly; and

17        WHEREAS,  On November 17, 1999, Michigan Attorney General
18    Jennifer Mulhern Granhohn sent a "Notice of Intended  Action"
19    to  ANF, ordering it to "immediately cease and desist selling
20    or disseminating this material to Michigan minors"; and

21        WHEREAS, In December,  1999,  the  Chicago  City  Council
22    passed  a  resolution  imploring  "the  public,  and  parents
23    especially,  to boycott ANF", and further urging stockholders
24    "to demand a public stand against advertising of this  nature
25    ... until advertising of this nature ceases"; and

26        WHEREAS, ANF now places its Quarterly in shrink wrap with
27    a  parental  warning  label  so  it can feature more sexually
28    explicit articles and pictures, even stating that  it  "might
29    as well make it worthwhile"; and
 
                            -2-               LRB9209105XXyyA
 1        WHEREAS, In the most recent catalogue, Spring Break Issue
 2    2001  titled  "XXX  Adventure:  Get  Wet  Set  & Go On Spring
 3    Break", approximately one-third of the 273 pages are  devoted
 4    to selling clothing while the remainder encourage promiscuous
 5    behavior; and

 6        WHEREAS,  On  page 58, a question is posed to "Ask A & F"
 7    from a Catholic high school senior, in love with a  nun,  who
 8    "fantasizes  about  taking  her  away ... where [they] can be
 9    together" and wants to know if he'll go to hell.  The answer:
10    "Probably.  But why not ask her anyway?  That's the only  way
11    you'll  get her to kick the habit.  Ha ha.  Get it?  Kick the
12    habit?"; and

13        WHEREAS,  On  page  62,  "Dating  the  Elderly"  includes
14    explicit discussion on how to have sex with a senior citizen;
15    and

16        WHEREAS, On page 68, "The Minnesota Twins"  talked  about
17    one  spring break when "we started drinking as soon as we got
18    there ... needed the bathroom really bad  and  wandered  onto
19    the  balcony.   He  was taking a pee and right underneath was
20    the security guard.  Needless to say, he  had  to  spend  the
21    weekend in jail"; and

22        WHEREAS,  On  page  123, Lenny Krayzelburg stated that he
23    "would do porno movies"; and

24        WHEREAS, On page 145, it  addresses  the  question  "What
25    advice  can  you  give to our readers who are going on Spring
26    Break and want to get laid?"; and

27        WHEREAS, It recommends books such  as  Imajica  by  Clive
28    Barker  -  "Sex  with men. Sex with Women. Sex with rain. Sex
29    with  hermaphrodites.  Sex  in  which  two   human   partners
30    physically devour each other..."; and

31        WHEREAS, On page 44 is a sensual scene planting the image
 
                            -3-               LRB9209105XXyyA
 1    of  three-way sex with two females and one male apparently in
 2    bed - all with eyes closed,  lips  parted,  with  one  female
 3    kissing the cheek of the male; and

 4        WHEREAS, On page 69, two nude males are in the weeds with
 5    their private parts blurred; and

 6        WHEREAS,  On pages 72-77 there are numerous wedding party
 7    pictures  showing  some  males  in  underwear  only  and  one
 8    snapshot showing a  male  removing  a  female's  dress  while
 9    others watch; and

10        WHEREAS, On page 105 is a completely nude male; and

11        WHEREAS,  On  pages  132-133 is a group shot of 3 females
12    (two topless) and seven males embracing,  with  four  of  the
13    males  completely  nude  with towel or female barely covering
14    their private parts; and

15        WHEREAS, On page 174 are three females pulling  down  the
16    boxers of a male with pubic hair visible; and

17        WHEREAS,  On  pages  202-203  is a completely nude female
18    (frontal  nudity)  and  completely  nude  male  (side  shown)
19    running in water; and

20        WHEREAS, On page 267, several females remove  the  shirts
21    and pants of two males in a strip dance; and

22        WHEREAS, On page 268, five females successfully pull down
23    the pants of two males, showing full rear nudity; and

24        WHEREAS,  The  Abercrombie  & Fitch Summer 2001 catalogue
25    begins with 121 full pages of explicit photographs  of  nude,
26    semi-nude, and provocatively posed young people; and

27        WHEREAS,  Advertisements  for clothing do not begin until
28    page 122 of the 280 page summer catalogue; and

29        WHEREAS,  54  of  the  280  pages  include  articles  and
 
                            -4-               LRB9209105XXyyA
 1    interviews tied  to  the  catalogue's  theme  of  "pleasure";
 2    therefore, be it

 3        RESOLVED,  BY  THE  SENATE  OF  THE NINETY-SECOND GENERAL
 4    ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we urge  the  public,
 5    and parents especially, to boycott Abercrombie and Fitch, and
 6    urge  stockholders  to  demand  a  public stand against their
 7    marketing techniques promoting an  obscene  lifestyle,  until
 8    advertising of this nature ceases.

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