Earlier this week, the pop star Katy Perry went space for eleven minutes as part of Jeff Bezos’ all-female Blue Origin crew. Afterwards, Perry was stunned to find herself being attacked on social media by the popular fast food restaurant chain Wendy’s.
Wendy’s Mocks Perry
Just after Perry, 40, returned to Earth on Monday, the official Wendy’s social media account took various jabs at her.
“Can we send her back,” read one post from Wendy’s in response to another post saying that Perry had returned from space. A separate post from Wendy’s stated that “when we said women in stem this isn’t what we meant.”
A source close to Perry is now firing back to defend the singer.
“Wendy’s didn’t make a joke — they made a choice,” the insider told People Magazine. “Their recent posts on X aimed at Katy Perry were not only disrespectful, but blatantly inappropriate.”
“This wasn’t harmless banter, this was a billion-dollar brand using its platform to publicly demean a woman,” the source added, going on to say that “when billion-dollar brands join in, it’s irresponsible.”
Insider Doubles Down
Not stopping there, the insider proceeded to double down.
“[Wendy’s is] not adding to the conversation, they’re dragging it down and this kind of behavior contributes to a culture where women are punished for standing out or a woman daring to do something different is a target,” the source argued.
“Telling a woman that she should be ‘sent back’ is shameful bullying and reflects a troubling willingness to tear down in today’s society,” the insider added. “What’s worse is that the face of Wendy’s is a woman, which makes this decision not just hypocritical, but painfully ironic.”
“Everyone expected more from a brand with this kind of platform. Wendy’s should ‘do the right thing’ (the name of one of their core values) apologize and do better in the future,” the source concluded.
Wendy’s responded to this with a brief statement. However, the restaurant chain noticeably stopped short of offering any kind of apology.
“We always bring a little spice to our socials, but Wendy’s has a ton of respect for Katy Perry and her out-of-this-world-talent,” Wendy’s said.
Related: Katy Perry Returns To Earth From Space – Immediately Kisses The Ground
Gayle King Sounds Off
On her Blue Origin mission to space, Perry was joined by CBS Mornings host Gayle King, former NASA rocket scientist Aisha Bowe, filmmaker Kerianne Flynn, civil rights activist Amanda Nguyen and Jeff Bezos’ fiancée, Lauren Sánchez.
“Space is not an either or, it’s a both,” King explained afterwards. “And because you do something in space doesn’t mean you’re taking anything away from Earth. And what you’re doing in space is trying to make things better here on Earth.”
“There was nothing frivolous about what we do,” King added. “So, you know, I’m very disappointed and very saddened by it [the criticism]. And I also say this — what it’s doing to inspire other women and young girls? Please don’t ignore that.”
King concluded by saying that “anybody that’s criticizing it doesn’t really understand what is happening here.”
Related: Katy Perry, 40, Breaks Her Silence After Going To Space In Blue Origin Launch – ‘Back To Reality’
Perry’s Lifelong Space Dream
Days before the launch, Perry told Elle that going to space has been a lifelong dream for her.
“I have wanted to go to space for almost 20 years,” Perry said. “I was investigating all of the possible commercial options. Even when Blue Origin was first talking about commercial travel to space, I was like, ‘Sign me up! I’m first in line.’ And then they called me, and I was like, ‘Really? I get an invite?’”
“And then they told me about it being the first all-female crew,” she continued. “I take pause in those moments and ask the universe to give me confirmations. And I really felt very sure when they sent me the picture of the space pod, because on the front of the pod is a feather, and that’s my mom’s nickname for me. And so I was like, ‘OK, I see it.’”
Only time will tell if Perry ever gets the apology from Wendy’s that she craves. Given the backlash that she has been receiving, we certainly hope that going to space was worth it for Perry!
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