What was 84 Lumber thinking with its Super Bowl ad?

The New York Post ^ | February 6, 2017 | Kyle Smith

[BradtotheBone]

Uplifting and patriotic ads are a staple of the Super Bowl, so last night the astonishing cynicism of that 84 Lumber ad really stood out. “Come on, illegal immigrants: Risk your lives, drag yourself across the harshest terrain and endure the most agonizing hardships. We need the cheap labor!”

In the 90-second spot for the construction-materials company, a Latino mother and daughter who are apparently sneaking across the southern border of the U.S. rise in the dark, walk along a barbed-wire fence, clamber aboard the boxcar of a moving train and wade across a river.

In the full-length, six-minute version, which the company said was rejected by Fox for being too political, the mother and daughter are despondent when they encounter an enormous wall in the desert. Then the little girl presents the mom with a crude American flag she has assembled from scraps of plastic bags, and the pair discover a gigantic set of doors in the wall. They proceed to stroll right through.

The ad is an unmistakable invitation to lawbreaking from a building-supplies company that, because of the industry it represents, is strongly associated with illegal immigrants. A Pew survey conducted between 2007 and 2012 found that construction was the sector that employed the second-largest number of illegal immigrants, after the service industry.

The guy who made the ad all but admitted the purpose of the ad was to draw illegal immigrants to work for the company. Michael Brunner, the CEO of Brunnerworks, the agency that created the spot, said its purpose was threefold: To generate awareness of the company, create pride in its workforce and fill jobs. “We’ve got over 400 positions that we’re looking to fill at all levels, at all capacities,” Brunner told KDKA, the CBS affiliate in Pittsburgh.

[Ann Archy]

SUICIDE!! That;s what they were thinking!!

[Phil DiBasquette]

Fake users\names, many of them

[Ann Archy]

Hey 84 Lumber.....you CUSTOMERS are HARD WORKING MIDDLE CLASS WORKERS THAT VOTED FOR TRUMP!!! You are IIDIOTS!!! The people that you LIKE don’t have a pot to piss in or are the MILIONAIRES ad BILLIONARIES that wouldn’t be caught DEAD in your “stores”. You are listening to your daughters in law!

[GOYAKLA]

I see what you did there! ;^}

[Pelham]

84 Lumber was wondering what it would feel like to be hit with a boycott of Superbowl proportions.

[Phil DiBasquette]

Major stockholders members of the board and the ad agencies may all be left wingers

[catnipman]

Contractors, Builders and DIY yourself people. Probably 75 to 85% male ... WHO WATCH FOOTBALL!

[Verybigstick]

I typed “Illegal Alien” into the their job search function and they have no positions available. False advertising!

https://www.84lumber.com/careers/current-openings/

[Grampa Dave]

Post me a link.

Thanks

[dragnet2]

I want action by the feds to put pressure on companies that hire illegals.

Has 86 Lumber filed for bankruptcy yet?

☺

[plain talk]

Probably not but it would be something to hope for. Same thing with these tech firms standing against the EO although there is quite a few of them.

[Bshaw]

84 Lumber must have been thinking, I need to give Bshaw a reason to never darken our doorstep again!

Mission accomplished!

[dragnet2]

Yeah, how stupid are the people at 86 Lumber? I can see them sitting in some conference room thinking, "Yeah, lets be cool and get on the political bandwagon". " Another chimes in, "It'll be great publicity"!

[dragnet2]

That’s why ya don’t let them on your property. The greedy contractors bring in these unknown drive-by labor illegals and one of them gets hurt on your property? You can and will be sued big.

[Some Fat Guy in L.A.]

They were thinking that lots of illegals work construction and use their materials. Seems like they forget who is paying.

[Svartalfiar]

It actually supports Legal Immigration. It suggests that immigrants find the Door and ask to come in.

They aren't going to find that door wandering in the desert crossing the Rio Grande. The commercial's subjects are obviously illegals. Yea, they may risk a lot trying to come here, but that doesn't make them any better or less illegal.