Stand Up To Cancer has updated its latest campaign after it was criticised heavily on social media for including only white people.
The #StandUpWithYT campaign originally featured 21 head shots of popular YouTubers, all of whom are white.
People quickly noticed there was something missing and took to social media to ask why there was such a “lack of diversity” in the campaign.
The charity has since responded by inviting YouTubers from different ethnic backgrounds to take part in the campaign.
Stand Up To Cancer’s original line-up of YouTubers featured Zoella, Jim Chapman, Amelia Mandeville, Alfie Deyes and Caspar Lee.
The aim was to “unite the YouTube community to beat cancer and transform lives” with a 1,000-hour fundraising mission and a four-hour live stream on 15th October.
The campaign photos were shot by Linda Blacker and shared on social media, but people immediately noticed there was a distinct lack of ethnic representation.
After YouTubers shared the campaign on their social media channels, plenty of people picked up on the fact that the line-up was overwhelmingly white.
Twitter user Neema wrote: “Hey @SU2C it’s not just ‘white’ people that get cancer. What was the reason behind the lack of diversity in your campaign?”
Ellie Dickinson added: “Do only white people get cancer?”
In response to the backlash, Stand Up To Cancer said it would be adding more YouTubers including Chanel Ambrose, Scola Dondo and Lizzie Loves to the campaign.
Rachel Carr, head of campaigns at Stand Up To Cancer, told The Huffington Post UK: “Stand Up To Cancer with YouTube is a campaign that unites the YouTube community to beat cancer and transform lives.
“We have been, and we still are, approaching creators from across the community to get involved. Linda’s photos launched the campaign and featured some of the most well-known faces from YouTube, but there’s lots more activity to come.
“We’re delighted that creators from diverse backgrounds have agreed to get involved with 1,000 hours of fundraising from now until October. Their support is going to be invaluable in encouraging everyone to stand up together against cancer.”
