Mercedes Che Guevara

Posted on by Emily in General

It’s not uncommon to use historical figures or character in advertising, but Mercedes took this practice to a new level when they used an image of communist revolutionary Che Guevara in a recent promotion. Cuban-Americans have been the most vocal about protesting the campaign’s use of such a controversial figure, and Mercedes-Benz has since apologized.

Mercedes Che Guevara

It all began in Las Vegas earlier this week when Dieter Zetsche, head of Daimler AG’s Mercedes unit, gave a presentation where one of the slides boasted a Mercedes car with the image of Che behind it and the text “Viva La Revolucion”. It was a brief moment, but enough to offend many people.

Many Cuban-Americans are upset with the company and say they will never purchase a Mercedes as a result. Felix Rodriguez is one such person who feels that using the image was offensives. Says Rodriguez:

“I do not understand how a company like Mercedes-Benz, which sells luxury cars, can use a figure of a man who preached class struggle … who preached violence and bloodshed and wanted to do away with capitalism and establish socialism.”

Mercedes Che Guevara

It seems that Mercedes was eager to promote their vehicles as “revolutionary” and were less than thoughtful when using the classic Che image. I think it’s somewhat understandable that people, especially those who were exiled from their home country because of communism, were upset.

This is pretty standard advertising controversy. While it’s too bad so many people were offended, I’ve definitely read about stranger stuff. Like when Dominos claimed they were going to be the first pizza parlor on the moon for marketing purposes and when a European dog company made television commercials that could be exclusively heard by dogs.

What Mercedes did isn’t necessarily admirable, but they were quick to apologize for their mistake. They also weren’t doing it to create a buzz or anything controversial– I think it was just the misconception that Che Guevara was a popular revolutionary figure. I know for me, this is a somewhat important story. I too bought into the pop appeal of Che and never thought about his role in destroying thousands of lives. I’m glad that so many Cuban-Americans have gotten vocal about this issue, because I think it needed to be brought to light. Mercedes Che Guevara