Dear Mr. Dan Schulman, CEO of Venmo/PayPal:

Look at this image and tell me what you see? I see, yet again at the hands of corporate America, a very negative and stereotypical image of a Black man. Why is he portrayed wearing a white tank top, sadly known as a “wife beater” and flaunting his masculinity by baring his hairy chest (often viewed as “animalistic”), while his yellow and white counterparts are fully clothed?

For centuries, Black people have been portrayed in the most negative and dehumanizing manner, particularly Black men. Stereotypes, like the one you created in this image, further perpetuates the lie that Black men are only good at being studs, thugs, pimps, and wimps. Enough, Venmo!

In the wake of the sweeping global “Black Lives Matter” movement, your company has the responsibility of righting this wrong. Venmo, I certainly appreciate your attempt to promote diversity in this image. However, I’m confident you can find more suitable attire for the Black man who probably represents a large percentage of your consumers, considering Black dollars spent in the USA alone equals more than $1.1 trillion dollars!

Assuming your image also represents economic disadvantages within the Black community, do that Black man a favor and buy him a nice outfit like or better than the one the other two people are wearing.

Most sincerely,

Kimberly K. Parker, Keen Eye Activist