If we know anything, it’s that jokes about the events of September 11, 2001 will never be ok.
It has just been over 15 years since terrorist hijacked commercial airliners and flew them into the World Trade Center buildings in New York and the Pentagon – as well as another hijacked plane which crashed into a field in Pennsylvania as passengers prevented it from reaching Washington DC.
Almost 3,000 people died, and another 6,000 were injured on a day which changed the world forever. Few events have had such worldwide consequences as 9/11, and a decade and a half later it is remains one of the most shocking moments in modern history.
In short, it’s never really lent itself well to light-hearted humour on a corporate scale, but that didn’t stop Miracle Mattress in Texas attempt to ‘honour’ the victims of that day by putting out the following TV spot to promote their company.
In the ad, a woman and two men talk about the ‘Twin Towers sale’, before the men fall into the surrounding mattresses, causing them to collapse.
The woman begins screaming before turning back to the camera and saying: “We’ll never forget”.
In all, it seems like something more likely to appear in an episode of It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia than in real life.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=afDC_BI1IFA
Naturally enough, the advert caused outrage online after it aired.
The owner of Miracle Mattress, Mike Bonanno, has promised to deal with the people responsible for making the advertisement.
The woman featured in the ad – Cherise Bonnano, who is apparently the daughter of store owner Mike – spoke to News 4 San Antonio and attempted to explain the ad and claimed to have received death threats in the wake of its release.
“We are not hate, we are love. We are somebody that stands out,” she says. “We are Miracle Mattress, we make miracles happen. And for our lives to be in danger, that’s not what we ever wanted.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZycLHbIbnDM
Although they had planned to continue operating as normal and donated some proceeds to 9/11-related charities, they later confirmed that the business would be closed indefinitely.
