- Miley Cyrus posted a photo on Instagram eating a cake frosted with the words "Abortion is healthcare."
- Becca Rea-Holloway, known as @thesweetfeminist on Instagram, claims to have originally created the cake.
- Rea-Holloway called Cyrus' post "a direct theft of my own original art work" since she was not given credit or compensated.
- Cyrus acknowledged in a comment that the design was "inspired" by Rea-Holloway's, and that a tag would be added to the post, but Rea-Holloway replied that "this is not 'inspiration,' it's theft."
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On Tuesday, Miley Cyrus posted a photo on Instagram eating a cake frosted with the words "Abortion is healthcare," teasing a coming partnership with Planned Parenthood, Marc Jacobs, and her own nonprofit, Happy Hippie Foundation.
People immediately noticed that the cake's design and aesthetic strongly resembled that of a cake created by Becca Rea-Holloway, known as @thesweetfeminist on Instagram, who posts photos of cakes bearing feminist messages. She originally shared an image of the "Abortion is healthcare" cake back in May 2018.
The two cakes are the same shape and both feature pink piping around the edge. The wording on the cakes is also exactly the same, down to the all-capital letters and underlined "is."
Rea-Holloway called Cyrus' post "a direct theft of my own original art work" since she was not given credit or compensated.
"@mileycyrus just announced a collaboration with @marcjacobs @plannedparenthood @happyhippiefdn using this image," she wrote. "It is a direct theft of my own original art work from May 2018, with no credit. It's literally my exact handwriting, message, and concept. Swipe for comparison! Cake art is for everyone, but this is inexcusable."
Rea-Holloway later added that "this is not 'inspiration,' it's theft."
Cyrus then responded in a comment, saying that she had seen a photo of Rea-Holloway's original cake online and was inspired by the design without realizing the source. She also said that @thesweetfeminist would be tagged in the image.
"Hi, we saw the image online and didn't realize it was yours," she wrote. "We will absolutely tag you for your work. This image is not on the Marc Jacobs x Planned Parenthood hoodie we made to raise money and awareness for Planned Parenthood, which I know is also close to your heart. It is just on the post and not on the merchandise but we will absolutely tag you and give you the credit for your art. If you could please correct your post, as we're going to make sure you have all the credit you deserve ... thanks for sharing your art and inspiring us."
People don't think Cyrus' explanation went far enough, saying that Rea-Holloway should be paid for her work.
"How about you correct your 'creative process' and compensate female artists you are 'inspired' by?" one user wrote.
"This. Cake. DOES NOT. Belong. To. You," another commenter wrote. "THIS IS ART THAT YOU STOLE AND THAT IS NOT OK. This belongs to @thesweetfeminist and you STOLE that. Support your artists and don't steal from them."
"Artwork by: @thesweetfeminist. Used without permission & identical in likeness. Cmon Miley!! Pay the woman her royalties," another person commented.
Rea-Holloway and representatives for Cyrus did not immediately respond to INSIDER's requests for comment.
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