A charity calendar in aid of a homelessness organisation has run into controversy not because it features bikini clad women but because it contains no Irish women. Just four of the 700 applicants for the 'Girls of Ryanair' calendar were Irish -- despite the proceeds going to an Irish charity.
The 2009 edition, launched in Dublin yesterday, is once again filled with female Ryanair cabin crew from all over Europe but no Irish women featured in the latest calendar after just four applied. Suggestions of prejudice against Irish girls were flatly denied by Ryanair.
The calendars are priced at €10 each and the airline is hoping to raise €100,000 for the Simon Community which cares for the homeless.
Top model Rosanna Davidson, speaking to the Irish Independent, said she believed more of an effort should have been made to involve Irish women in the fundraising project. "If I was organising it, I would have made sure that Irish women were involved because it's an Irish charity and Irish fundraising. Any person from any part of Europe would say that Irish women are gorgeous."
Simon's Dublin CEO, Sam McGuinness, defended the airline's decision to feature bikini-clad women. "Ryanair have shown a genuine interest in helping and we have taken it at that level," he said.
Last year's calendar sparked a backlash from women's rights groups, including Spanish organisation FACUA, which accused Ryanair of presenting female flight attendants as "sexual objects".
And in a tongue-in-cheek move that is now typical of the Ryanair PR machine, a free copy of the new calendar is to be sent to the agency. "Ryanair expects that these typical humourless groups will again oppose Ryanair's 2009 cabin crew calendar, but at least they will have the benefit of 13 stunning Ryanair babes throughout the year," a statement read.
www.dublinsimon.ie
Comments
Tricky choice
I can think of many reasons why I dislike Ryanair, and the appearance of another catalogue like this compounds my dislike. Still, under Charity Commission guidelines (applicable to England and Wales), a charity is bound to accept such a donation unless there is likely to be a demonstrable negative impact.
On the Commission's frequently asked questions page, the Commission says:
"trustees need to ensure that whichever method chosen it is in the best interests of the charity, and not only in a financial sense. They need to be alert and sensitive to public opinion and criticism."
I'm not sure whether the calendar would be rejected on these grounds by an English/Welsh charity.
Still, I like the quote from Sam McGuinness mentioned above:
"Ryanair have shown a genuine interest in helping and we have taken it at that level."
That's a very good way of thanking the airline but distancing the charity from the catalogue.
One to walk away from?
I know 100k is a lot of money for any organisation, especially now, but I just wonder is this one of those instances where its ok to say no?