Madonna caused a social media stir after posting altered photos of Martin Luther King Jr. and Nelson Mandela to her Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram accounts last week.
Billboard.com reported that the photos are takes on a promotional portrait of the 56-year-old singer that feature her face wrapped in black cords.
Her recent social media campaign has featured a number of iconic personalities wrapped in the cords, and promotes the forthcoming album, "Rebel Heart." Apparently, each personality is thus identified by the pop star as a "Rebel Heart."
The campaign is all over the place, and has featured varied personalities like Princess Diana, Homer Simpson, Marilyn Monroe, Frida Kahlo, The Grinch, and a few prominent DJs.
Many took issue with the inclusion of King and Mandela, with many critics calling the campaign a "disrespectful" act of vandalism, and an appropriation of serious political activism for commercial purposes.
"I can’t believe you would stoop this low . . . You’re commandeering other people’s likenesses and other photographers COPYWRITTEN images for your own pathetic agenda," wrote one critic on Instagram,
according to The Independent U.K.
On Friday, after being called out, Madonna issued a typo-laden defense statement via Facebook, explaining that the images she'd posted were fan-generated, and that she only meant for them to be an homage to those prominent icons whom she respects and idolizes.
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