Opportunistic': Australian Ballet criticised for 'lazy approach' to combating racism

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Abas Mirzaei, senior lecturer in marketing at Macquarie Business School, said the Australian Ballet risked looking opportunistic by failing to back up its Instagram post with concrete action.

“Posting a black square was a lazy approach to express solidarity, and to support black lives matter,” he said.

The corporate world has rushed to support the Black Lives Matter movement, but Dr Mirzaei said it was risky for brands to pretend to care for a particular social issue if claims were not backed up by meaningful action such as promoting racial diversity on stage.

“And of course it falls flat with customers,” he said.

Dr Mirzaei praised Bloch for adjusting its marketing and revising product lines.

“Compared to Cookie Cutter tweets, and Instagram posts, such a decision is much more impactful, and shows real commitment,” he said.