Now ‘the dress’ is used in Salvation Army campaign
IT was the dress that sparked an online global debate about its colour – was it black and blue or white and gold?
The picture posted by Caitlin McNeill from the isle of Colonsay drew comment from celebrities such as Kim Kardashian, Kanye West, Taylor Swift and Justin Bieber and led to an appearance on a top US TV show.
Now the colour controversy has been picked up by the Salvation Army in South Africa – and used in a campaign against domestic violence.
It features in an image of a woman covered in bruises, wearing a white and gold dress, with the caption: ‘Why is it so hard to see black and blue?’
The online saga of the dress began just over week ago, after arguments on Colonsay about its colour. It was worn by Cecilia Bleasdale, who thought it was black and blue, to the wedding of her daughter Grace Johnston – who was convinced it was white and gold.
When the argument went global, Mrs Johnston and her new husband Keir were flown to Los Angeles to appear on the Ellen DeGeneres Show, along with Miss Bleasdale and Miss McNeill.
Mrs Johnston, 2 , told four million viewers: ‘My mum sent me three pictures of three different dresses. I said, “Which one do you like the best?” She preferred the third one. I said, “Oh, the white and gold one?” She said, “No… the blue and black one.”’
Now the dress is being used to help curb domestic violence.
A Salvation Army spokesman said: ‘We hope this image helps people to see the true impact of this crime.’