This past Friday, billboards depicting FLOTUS Melania Trump appeared in the capital of Croatia. Next to her face was the slogan, “Just imagine how far you can go with a little bit of English.”
These billboards advertised the Američki Institut, which is a local language school. Ivis Buric, the communications manager for the Institute, tells CNBC that Trump was chosen as the face of the advertisements because she is the “the most recognized emigrant to the U.S. from this region.” According to The Telegraph, Brett Campbell, the co-founder of the Institute, says that the billboard is meant to remind people “of the importance of knowing the world of languages and how much knowledge is essential for international success.”
However, people aren’t interpreting the advertisements that way. In fact, according to The Associated Press, it appears that it’s “meant to be a joke about her English, spoken with a heavy accent.”
Melania is threatening to sue over this English class billboard pic.twitter.com/RbCn0BTley
— Barry Corindia (@barry_corindia) September 20, 2017
Further, the photo depicts Trump in a white dress that appears to be the one she wore to the 2016 Republican National Convention, where she was accused of plagiarizing Michelle Obama’s speech. If this outfit choice is any less than a coincidence, then the billboards were definitely not meant to commend Trump for her English skills.
Trump threatened to take legal action against these billboards, as the photos were used without her permission. The billboards were removed on Tuesday.
Trump’s lawyer, Natasa Pirc-Musar, says, “I'm satisfied with the fact that the school admitted that they violated the law and that they are ready to remove the billboards and (Facebook) ads. We are still analyzing possible further legal steps."
"We are very sorry that the billboards were misunderstood as something intended to mock the U.S. first lady," Ivis Buric, a spokeswoman for the Institute, says, according toStar Tribune. "It was meant to be something positive, to show her as a role model."
We can’t argue with the logic behind using Melania Trump as the face of a language institute. As noted by the Telegraph, she is fluent in Slovenian, English, German, French, and Serbian. She grew up in Slovenia before moving to New York in 1996 and meeting Donald Trump at a Fashion Week party in 1998.
