First debuting the wool balaclava sweaters in 2018, Gucci now faces backlash after people online mentioned its resemblance to blackface and the racist “Sambo” doll.
Despite Gucci’s claim that it is dedicated to diversity, this sweater, said to be based off of “vintage ski masks” that were intended to “add a mysterious feel” to the collection, heavily resembles blackface, and are causing public outrage. After all of the times big brands have had to apologize for causing controversy, one would think that Gucci would have known better.
After the backlash, Gucci issued an apology, stating “Gucci deeply apologizes for the offense caused by the wool balaclava jumper. We can confirm that the item has been immediately removed from our online store and all physical stores. We consider diversity to be a fundamental value to be fully upheld and at the forefront of every decision we make. We are fully committed to increasing diversity throughout our organization and turning this incident into a powerful learning moment for the Gucci team and beyond.”
For months, the sweaters went unnoticed, possibly due to being hidden under jackets and other layers of clothing. In numerous Twitter comments, people suggest that Gucci created the strife as a publicity stunt.
Here’s what people have to say about it:
If you hire more Black people and cultivate an environment where people on all levels of the company feel comfortable to speak up incidents like this will be avoided.
— The GLOWBOSS (@VanessaVeasley) February 7, 2019
— Chunkybone (@Chunkybone44) February 7, 2019
I’m starting to think companies are doing this on purpose for publicity I mean these items go through several levels of approval and no one at any level ever sees anything wrong with it #GUCCI
— Bo$$ Maine (@TheOnlySirDook) February 7, 2019
