New York (United States), Aug 2 (LaPresse) – The American clothing company American Eagle is defending its jeans advertising campaign featuring 27-year-old actress Sydney Sweeney, which sparked a debate about race and Western beauty standards. At the center of the controversy is the campaign slogan, "Sydney Sweeney has great jeans," a pun between "jeans" and "genes," which critics say alludes to white supremacist ideologies. The campaign, American Eagle stated in a declaration published on its Instagram account, "is and always has been about jeans. We will continue to celebrate the way everyone confidently wears their American Eagle jeans, their way. Great jeans look good on everyone." This is the company's first official response after days of criticism following the launch of the ad campaign. Most of the criticism focused on the use of the word "jeans" pronounced like "genes," referring to the blonde-haired, blue-eyed actress known for the TV series "Euphoria" and "White Lotus." Some detractors interpreted the pun as a nod, intentional or not, to eugenics.