And just like that, your iced coffee is racist now.
Yes, in the latest episode of “Everything Offends Someone,” Dunkin’ is under fire for—brace yourself—mentioning genetics in an ad. That’s right. An ad promoting a fruity summer drink starring a tan actor has somehow been swept into the same outrage tsunami that’s engulfing American Eagle for daring to acknowledge that people have, you know, inherited traits.
What started as a light-hearted campaign featuring The Summer I Turned Pretty actor Gavin Casalegno—promoting the new Golden Hour Refresher by nodding to his “golden” tan—has now been accused of… we’re not even kidding here… co-signing eugenics.
Because apparently, admiring someone’s skin tone is one step away from endorsing a master race, according to Twitter’s PhD-in-outrage crowd.
NEW: Dunkin’ appears to release its own version of the American Eagle ad featuring actor Gavin Casalegno.
The Dallas, Texas-born model was heard talking about his “genes,” similar to the American Eagle ad.
“Look, I didn’t ask to be the king of summer. It just kind of… pic.twitter.com/kUzxNvB1Wp
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) July 30, 2025
The lefties on Bluesky are having a fit:
The American Eagle ad, the Dunkin’ Donuts ad, and whatever next one comes after them will be no surprise when you truly accept that we live in a fascist country now and the messaging from the overculture will be more overtly fascist as well. And please don’t let anyone gaslight you about it.
— Logan Grendel (@focusedoninfinity.bsky.social) July 31, 2025 at 1:35 AM
Ugh now Dunkin donuts is talking eugenics what the actual fuck is this timeline broo
— Reality Winner (@reazlepuff.bsky.social) July 30, 2025 at 2:29 PM
@sarajmccord Replying to @FAT ♬ Silence 57 Seconds – 💙 UK8000UK 💙©️™️
@_xotm I have no words. Just this rant right now. These brands need to hire more creatives of color and not just at entry level but high level execs bc this (very intential) gross & problematic marketing is not it. #hayleywilliams #sydneysweeney #americaneagle #dunkindonuts ♬ original sound – Tania | Latina Creator 🇲🇽
And this backlash comes hot on the heels of the firestorm surrounding American Eagle’s campaign with Sydney Sweeney. Her crime? Saying in a denim ad that “genes are passed down from parents to offspring.” Yes, that very basic biological statement—something you’d find in a fifth-grade science textbook—is now being read as a dog whistle for white supremacy.
Because she has blonde hair and blue eyes. And that, folks, is apparently all it takes to get accused of promoting eugenics in 2025.
Do the angry liberal women losing their minds over this realize half the ads in the 80s and 90s looked just like it?
Overt heterosexuality was still allowed back then. #SydneySweeney pic.twitter.com/wd7g3fesmN
— Tara Servatius (@TaraServatius) July 29, 2025
As a PROUD black man, I see nothing wrong with Sydney Sweeney and American Eagle parading her “good genes/jeans.”
Celebrating blue eyes and blonde hair isn’t “white supremacy.” Those are conventionally attractive, GOOD GENES. That doesn’t mean they’re the ONLY good genes. pic.twitter.com/FNfcpHuXZg
— Xaviaer DuRousseau (@XAVIAERD) July 28, 2025
You can’t make this up.
And now Dunkin’—Dunkin’, the most unassuming of coffee chains, the place known more for sprinkles and sausage croissants than secret political messages—is being dragged because someone said the word “genetics” while showing a tan actor drinking a peach drink. That’s it. That’s the whole controversy.
But don’t worry, social media sleuths are here to tell you what you should really be offended by. Because when they see “golden skin,” they don’t just see a summer glow—they see a conspiracy. A carefully coded message pushing some “idealized” look.
Somewhere along the way, celebrating natural traits like eye color, tan lines, or—heaven forbid—bone structure has become cultural contraband.
And you’ve got to wonder: is there any way to market anything anymore without tripping over the tangled web of progressive purity tests?
Say “genetics”? That’s racist.
Say “golden”? That’s colorism.
Mention “heritage”? Colonialism.
Show someone looking attractive in jeans? That’s body-shaming unless they tick every intersectional checkbox and declare their pronouns in the opening frame.
Meanwhile, normal people are just trying to drink their coffee and maybe enjoy an ad that doesn’t feel like a hostage video to activist Twitter.
But this is where we are.
Advertising can’t just be clever or catchy anymore. It has to be cleared by an unofficial tribunal of professionally offended ideologues who spend their days combing through 30-second clips for any hint of privilege, prejudice, or problematic phrasing.
The irony? These same folks constantly preach about representation—until the person being represented is attractive, successful, and doesn’t apologize for it. Then suddenly, it’s a crisis.
So here we are, staring at a Dunkin’ ad and wondering how long before coffee shops are forced to release diversity statements for every latte. Because nothing says “progress” like censoring biology, vilifying beauty, and turning iced beverages into battle lines in a never-ending culture war.
