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PaddyPowerVideo via YouTube.com

Call for 'transphobic' Paddy Power advert to be withdrawn

The Transgender Equality Network Ireland has called the advert “deeply hurtful” – but Paddy Power says it was intended to be “a bit of mild mannered fun”.

AN IRISH TRANSGENDER support group has today called on bookmaker Paddy Power to withdraw a video being used to adverstise Cheltenham Ladies Day, describing it as offensive.

The Transgender Equality Network Ireland (TENI) said the ad, which was broadcast on SkySports in Ireland and the UK last weekend, was “deeply transphobic”.

The advert begins with a reference to a Facebook comment on Paddy Power’s page, in which a user writes: “Can’t wait to see some beauties at Cheltenham Ladies Day”.

A voiceover then announces that Paddy Power aims to make this year’s event “even more exciting by sending in some beautiful transgendered ladies”. A series of different women are then shown, and racegoers are invited to “spot the stallions from the mares”.

TENI National Development Worker Vanessa Lacey said that the advert was making people feel “mocked and ridiculed (and) deeply hurt.”

“The situation in Ireland is that transgender people face a huge amount of marginalisation,” said TENI Director Broden Giambrone. “The longer that ad stays up, the longer it is causing harm. We want for Paddy Power to do the right thing and remove the ad and issue an apology.”

‘No wish to cause offence’

Speaking to the TheJournal.ie, head of communications at the company, Paddy Power, said he was “surprised by the strong reaction” and insisted that the it “genuinely did not wish to cause offence”.

Power pointed out that several members of the transgendered community in the UK had participated in the making of the ad, and that it had also been cleared by the country’s television adverstising standards NGO, Clearclast, before being broadcast.

He explained that the ad was part of the bookmakers’ new We Hear You campaign – which aims to show more interaction with social media users. Although admitting that response to the ad had been “mixed”, Power said that it was intended to be “a bit of mild mannered fun”.

He rejected the suggestion that the ad mocked transgender women, saying  it “depicted transgender women as beautiful” and was making the point that you “wouldn’t be able to tell the difference”.

Power said there were no plans to withdraw the advert.

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    Mute Dublinjonny_No.2
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    Oct 20th 2014, 3:58 PM

    We need a fund it campaign to raise finances to pay a few showers and toilet flushes

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    Mute Lily
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    Oct 20th 2014, 3:58 PM

    Would love the last photo in my living room. Its beautiful and mysterious.

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    Mute Daragh Muldowney
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    Oct 21st 2014, 2:29 PM

    Hi Lily, Are you in Dublin? The exhibition ‘Out of Thin Air’ is on at the Copper House until November 7th and you can see that picture at 36″ x 32″ in liquid Acrylic.

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    Mute Brendan Brennan
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    Oct 20th 2014, 4:33 PM

    Ow this could be the way I can pay for our wedding….
    (Don’t think she would like the idea though)

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    Mute Bullet
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    Oct 20th 2014, 4:26 PM

    If anyone would like to read further we did a full interview with one of the co-founders here.

    http://goo.gl/be5Y6a

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    Mute Frederick Constant
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    Oct 20th 2014, 9:24 PM

    Sounds like a good way to secure funds from man on the street if the professional financiers don’t fancy investing. Although if the banks don’t want to lend, or to lend cheaply, there’s usually an underlying risk basis to that decision. Otherwise they’d have a piece of it for themselves..

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    Mute Richard Mccarthy
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    Oct 20th 2014, 10:44 PM

    It’s a wonderful way to get a project off the ground that otherwise wouldn’t see the light of day,I have supported a sucessfull film venture on the Cajun zydeco music tradition in the US, through kickstarter fundraiser,the idea can be applied to any project anywhere that has the potential to suceed,if for some reason the funding effort fails to reach its set figure by the due date,the amount you have funded is left in your account,it also has potential for jobs and employment in rural areas where some companies just wouldn’t go.

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    Mute Patrick
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    Oct 20th 2014, 9:27 PM

    E begging

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