David Beckham’s son accused of racism by Chinese internet users
Brooklyn takes down post, goes private on Instagram after pictures of Chinese tourists in Italy cause offence
David Beckham’s eldest son Brooklyn has provoked a furious backlash among mainland Chinese internet users by posting a “racist” Instagram photo to his 11.6 million followers while on holiday in Venice.
The now-deleted post from the 19-year-old shows Chinese tourists in a gondola as well as in a local supermarket, with the caption “No place like Italy innit”.
The post was liked by his two younger brothers along with more than 100,000 others, according to a report by Chinese news portal Sina.com.cn on Friday.
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Chinese social media users quickly flooded his Instagram page with abusive comments accusing him of “racism” and “insulting China”.
Some told him to “never come to China to fish for money again” and demanded an apology, while others asked why Chinese or Asian-looking tourists were being singled out for criticism.
Beckham was paid £100,000 (US$131,000) to star in an advertisement for the Chinese mobile phone manufacturer Huawei in 2016, while landing on the cover of a Vogue China publication in the same year.
The aspiring model has made his Instagram account private as a result of the controversy.
