Max Factor drops racist Kuwaiti blogger

RIYADH – Max Factor Arabia, which has worked with Kuwaiti Sondos Al Qattan, says it will sever ties with the beauty influencer.

In a statement to online website The National, the cosmetics company said that “Max Factor Arabia was shocked by the comments made by the influencer Al Qattan. Sondos’ comments are personal and do not represent either the values or the principles that Max Factor Arabia stands for. Max Factor stands for women’s empowerment and supporting every woman to express her individuality, irrespective of ethnicity and occupation. Max Factor Arabia is taking this incident very seriously and have immediately suspended all collaborations with Sondos.”

Shiseido, which has collaborated with Al Qattan, also told The National that “Shiseido does not support or align with the recent statements made by Sondos Al Qattan.”

Makeup brand MAC, which was featured in Al Qattan’s posts, has yet to issue a statement.

Al Qattan recently sparked outrage for a social media post slamming the Kuwaiti government’s policy to give Filipino domestic workers rest days and bar employers from holding their passports.

Talking to news agency AFP, Al Qattan, for her part, stood by her original comments over the new laws: “All I said was that the employer was entitled to keep the servant’s passport, and that many Kuwaitis and Gulf nationals agree with me,” Al Qattan said.

“I have the right as a kafil (sponsor) to keep my employee’s passport, and I am responsible for paying a deposit of up to 1,500 dinars (about Dh18,000),” she said.

She also said keeping an employee’s passport was not a human rights breach because “I did not deprive the employee of her salary or beat her.”