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Prada pulls out items after being blasted for RACISM: Another dent in the fashion industry?
The luxury brand's new line features a range of "mysterious creatures" including one with blackface imagery.
Some time ago, luxury brand Dolce & Gabbana was under fire for posting a racist advertising campaign that was targeted at the Chinese. Post that, following suit, Prada is now under fire for using blackface style imagery in stores in New York and online. Display photos of the brand's holiday campaign features black caricatures with exaggerated red lips, which received a lot of backlash from social media.
Chinyere Ezie, a noted civil rights lawyer and social justice activist was one of the people who lashed out against the campaign on social media. She said she was "shaking with anger" while she walked past the store where the caricature was displayed. She took to Twitter to say "History cannot continue to repeat itself. Black America deserves better." Her Facebook post on the same topic has gone viral and has received more than 8,000 shares and thousands of comments.
Clearly, she was not the only person who thought these figurines were racist. After the backlash Prada received on social media, they had to get rid of the items. In a statement to a news agency, a spokesperson of the brand told a news agency that these were envisioned as "imaginary creatures" and not meant to mimic any blackface caricatures. The brand denied racist motivations and mentioned that they did not intend to offend or hurt anybody.
Blackface essentially refers to a practice where white musicians and performers put on dark makeup to stereotype and make fun of African-Americans. It is essentially racist and de-humanising and is still considered a negative stereotype today.
Prada has taken down the tweets and display cartoons from its website and all social media channels. No apology has been issued yet.
We think it's about time luxury brands take note of who their customers are and move ahead with the times. It is a time where the world is becoming more inclusive and these influential designers and brands should take a stand and be part of the movement, as well.
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