Gucci has joined the long list of fashion brands that have offended black people with its newly released black woollen jumper that looks like the racist blackface used to demean black people in America’s history.
The luxury brand placed on sale the black “balaclava jumper” which covers the lower half of the face featuring a red cut-out around the mouth. It quickly received backlash on social media for the design which was deemed offensive.
This trend of producing controversial items without analyzing its cultural significance to the consumer has been described as a deliberate publicity mechanism by many critics after repetition of the same “offence”.
Though the Italian fashion brand has come out to apologize, just like Prada and H&M, scores of popular black people are not having it with some calling for a total boycott of the brand.
Take a look at what some of them had to say:
Popular Harlem fashion designer, Dapper Dan, who has a collaboration with Gucci weighed in on the controversy:
Acclaimed movie director Spike Lee announced he’s not going to wear Gucci or Prada until they hire some black designers:
T.I. called for a Gucci boycott and also called out Prada and Moncler:
Gaining some recent attention for his popular Gucci headbands, Soulja Boy also cancelled the brand:
Waka Flocka called on blacks to purchase black brands:
Trevor Noah thinks this is what should happen anytime something of this sort occurs:
Russel Simmons also had this to say:
Joe Budden says we hear them “loud and clear”:
