Italian Fashion Brands Are Called On To Combat Racism In Their Own Country
Photo Courtesy of EPA
Popular Italian fashion designers are being called out for exploiting the Black Lives Matter movement in the U.S. while failing to confront racism in their own region.
Italy’s fashion industry has been under fire in the past for racially insensitive clothing. Some believe that the reason for this is the lack of diversity within the staff for these clothing lines. Gucci, Dolce & Gabbana, and Prada are some of Italy’s biggest fashion leaders, but do nothing to promote racial variety in the industry.
Last year, Gucci released a black turtleneck that rolls up to cover the mouth with large red lips painted on. In 2018, Dolce & Gabbana released an ad that showed a Chinese woman struggling with chopsticks to eat dishes like pizza and a large cannoli. In the same year, Prada’s New York location had blackface figurines on display in the window.
According to Prya Elan, with The Guardian, there weren’t any black-owned fashion brands on display during Milan’s fashion week. Stella Jean, known to be the first Black Italian designer, sent a letter to the governing body of Italian fashion.
Jean titled the letter, “Do #BLM in Italian Fashion?” In the letter she called for more than just talk when it comes to tackling racism. Cosigned by Edward Buchanan, and American designer, they both called for “true collaboration” with Black designers instead of simply sitting at a table talking about diversity.
When the Black Lives Matter movement resurfaced after the death of George Floyd, these big-name designers posted black squares on their social media in effort to join the movement. With a lack of action, posting the black squares can be seen as just a tactic to expand their following and possible customers.
Stella and Buchanan want more than an Instagram post, they want the same anti-racism sentiment that they post on social media to be carried out in the Italian fashion industry. One proposal that she listed in the letter was for collaboration with African artists.
A lot of fashion designers gain inspiration from Black culture, but she wants Italian companies to team up with an organization called Made in Africa. Instead of being inspired by Black culture, they’d be able to collaborate with actual Black artists.
The end goal for this call to action is so that Black artists can have their work displayed in Italy, so that they can receive the appreciation and acknowledgment that their hard work deserves.