ANC Slams Glenlivet and Dineo Langa Ad for Using Winnie Mandela's Legacy to Sell Whisky

• The Glenlivet South Africa ran a Women's Month campaign featuring actress Dineo Langa alongside imagery of Winnie Madikizela-Mandela and the 1956 Women's March
• The ANC released an official statement condemning the ad, calling the struggle icons' legacies 'not marketing props'
• Both Glenlivet and Langa issued public apologies after the video was pulled from official channels amid widespread backlash

A Women's Month whisky advertisement starring actress Dineo Langa has exploded into a full-blown national controversy after the campaign drew on the imagery of Winnie Madikizela-Mandela and the 1956 Women's March to promote The Glenlivet. The ad was swiftly deleted, but not before screen recordings spread widely across social media and ignited a furious public response.

What the Glenlivet ad showed

The 75-second black-and-white video featured Langa in a tailored light-coloured pantsuit, moving through interior spaces adorned with portraits of struggle icons Winnie Madikizela-Mandela, Lilian Ngoyi and Sophie Williams-de Bruyn while swirling a glass of whisky. On-screen text invoked the iconic anti-pass law rallying cry 'Wathint' abafazi, wathint' imbokodo' and referenced 'the great Mama Winnie Mandela,' drawing a direct line between the bravery of the 1956 marchers and the product being promoted.

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ANC fires back at the brand

The African National Congress was the first major organisation to issue a formal response, releasing a statement titled ‘Statement on the Use of the Legacy of the 1956 Women's March in Alcohol Advertising.’ The party said it had ‘noted with deep concern" an advert using images of ‘some of South Africa's most revered struggle icons… to promote an alcoholic product."

The ANC also highlighted the historical use of alcohol as ‘an instrument of exploitation and control' under apartheid, making the campaign ‘particularly insensitive.' Party national spokesperson Mahlengi Bhengu-Motsiri reinforced the position, stating that these women's ‘legacies and sacrifices are not marketing props.’

Check out the ANC statement below:

Apologies issued, but questions linger

Glenlivet SA confirmed the post's removal and issued a joint statement:

"The Glenlivet unreservedly apologises for a recent influencer post which drew on the legacy of the 1956 Women's March… We are investigating how this post was conceptualised and approved to make sure this does not happen again."

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Langa quoted the brand's post, adding:

"I am sorry for the harm I have caused. I understand the gravity of this mistake and will be more mindful in future."

X users had mixed takes

QueenSurveyor wrote:

"This is the ANC I loved, pity you guys decided to be my oppressor."

Pholoho_Mpiti was blunter:

"La bayza! You've fumbled the bag here."

Dineo Langa pulled back the controversial ad

Dineo Langa and The Glenlivet pulled their Women's Month advert after it drew fierce criticism on social media.

Critics accused the actress and the whisky brand of commercialising South Africa's historic 1956 Women's March.

Source: Briefly News