Gillette ad shows man teaching transgender son to use razor: ‘Your first shave is special’

Gillette’s latest ad shows a father teaching his transgender son how to shave, the razor company’s latest foray into social justice issues.

“Whenever, wherever, however it happens – your first shave is special,” reads the caption on Gillette’s Facebook page.

“Growing up, I was always trying to figure out what kind of man I wanted to become, and I’m still trying to figure out what kind of man that I want to become,” the transgender man, identified as Samson, says in the video. “I always knew I was different. I didn’t know that there was a term for the type of person that I was. I went into my transition just wanting to be happy. I’m glad I am at the point where I am able to shave.”

“I’m at the point in my manhood where I am actually happy,” Samson said. “It’s not just myself transitioning, it’s everybody around me transitioning.”

The ad, released on May 23, is a part of Gillette’s revamped “The Best A Man Can Get” campaign. “The Best A Man Can Get” has been the motto for the company, which is owned by Proctor & Gamble, for some three decades. Gillette was founded in 1901 by King C. Gillette — whose familiar mustachioed visage appeared on much of its advertising.

Gillette’s current advertising campaign is centered around the #MeToo movement. In an ad released in January and focused on sexual harassment and “toxic masculinity,” Gillette asked: “Is this the best a man can get? Is it? We can’t hide from it. It has been going on far too long. We can’t laugh it off, making the same old excuses.”

The January ad’s released sparked online criticism and allegations of hypocrisy as people shared photos of previous Gillette marketing stunts objectifying women. Former CNN host Piers Morgan called the ad “absurd virtue-signaling.”