Ogilvy and Swift: Dove’s As Early as Five

Dove’s As Early as Five campaign by Ogilvy and Swift, a Wunderman Thompson company, arrives in the wake of research from the brand which reveals that Black girls can experience discrimination about how they wear their hair from the age of five.’

The Dove 2021 CROWN Research Study for Girls reveals that 53% of Black mothers in the US, whose daughters have experienced hair discrimination, say their daughters experienced the discrimination as early as five years old. Approximately 86% of Black teens who experience discrimination have endured it by the age of twelve.

The campaign video was directed by writer/director Aisha and begins with a tagline that reads “based on too many true stories.”

The moving ad opens with the story of a young girl being encouraged to love her hair by her father, only to discover that her braids don’t fit her school’s hair policy. She is unfairly criticised by a series of people at school and work for her hairstyles, but she explains, “my dad always told me that I should fight for my hair. So, I am.” The video concludes with the note encouraging people to get involved by signing the CROWN petition.

The campaign forms part of a wider movement by creatives and photographers to celebrate natural Black hair.

Alessandro Manfredi, Dove’s global executive vice president said: “As Early As Five is a continuation of Dove’s longstanding efforts to contest harmful beauty standards. Dove believes Black women and girls should have the freedom to wear their hair how they choose without the fear of job loss or education.”