P&G wants you to widen your gaze and confront racial stereotypes against the black community

Procter & Gamble (P&G) has launched a content creation and talent development platform for black creators and to improve their representation in advertising and media.

Called Widen The Screen, the consumer goods giant behind brands like Gillette, Tide, and Ariel released a film that portrayed stereotypes about black people such as single mothers and men committing a crime only to switch it with the reality of the very people leading happy and loving lives.

The 120-second film was made by WPP’s Grey and narrated by Academy Award-winning actor Mahershala Ali.

P&G said black stories are too often portrayed as one extreme––either struggle or triumph. While those stories exist, they do not represent the full Black experience.

The company also revealed it is collaborating with Black-owned film production studio SpringHill Company on a project that takes us along the journey of a young boy's imagination to showcase a range of professional opportunities beyond athletics.

It has also teamed up with SATURDAY MORNING, Tribeca Studios, and multiple Black storytellers to create scripted stories told in 8 minutes and 46 seconds – the exact amount of time Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin kneeled on George Floyd’s neck that led to his death last year in May and went on to spark the Black Lives Matter movement.

P&G has released a series of ads since the movement began that highlighted the biases, prejudices, and discrimination the black community suffers.