This was definitely not the dream Martin Luther King Jr. had in mind.
Copper Tans, a chain tanning salon with 11 locations throughout Central and South Florida, is under fire for a promotional ad it ran on Monday which many people found offensive.
The ad features a photo of Martin Luther King Jr. delivering his famous speech at the Washington Monument. The promotional text reads, "I have a dream... That everyone is tan."
This, from a speech which famously longed for a future where people would be judged "not by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character."
Critics were quick to call out the insensitivity of the ad, many taking to the company's Facebook page with comments like "fail" "wow" and "that's not okay."
NBC 6 called several Copper Tan locations, including the South Beach spot, for comment but did not receive any.
In an emailed statement NBC 6 obtained from a patron who complained, the owner of Copper Tan apologized for the ad, saying "we in no way wanted to offend anyone and wanted it to be funny, but now understand how it may not have been."
Local
This is not the company's first time using controversial marketing strategies around Martin Luther King Jr. day.
Their ad last year featured the same exact wording, except they used a photo of a model instead of King.
Copper Tans isn't the only company in hot water over an MLK-related branding blunder.
The Seattle Seahawks, less than 24 hours after clinching a spot in the Super Bowl, found themselves in a similar social media fumble.
The team caught heat for a tweet featuring a photo of an emotional team quarterback Russell Wilson with the text "We shall overcome. #MLKDay"
The tweet was later deleted, and the team issued an apology for its "poor judgment."
