Prada Faces Backlash After Selling Blackface-Like Monkey Charms

The popular fashion brand #Prada is facing a lot of heat after its New York store was seen selling monkey-like figurines with large red lips that appear to be mirroring blackface.

On Thursday (Dec. 13) images taken of a Prada store in Soho, Manhattan showed the blackface-like monkey charms. The next day Prada began removing the items, which are now being considered racist, The Hollywood Reporter reports. The charms are dark-colored monkeys with large red lips; Prada named them “Pradamalia” charms. The trinkets come with a leather card holder ($280), leather keychain trick ($550) and leather mini-bag ($750).

The charms are described as the Italian house’s “new family of mysterious creatures” named Disco, Socks, Fiddle, Otto, Toto, Scuba and Spot. The charms were also pulled from the company’s website.

A spokesperson wrote to THR on Friday: “Prada Group abhors racist imagery. The Pradamalia are fantasy charms composed of elements of the Prada oeuvre. They are imaginary creatures not intended to have any reference to the real world and certainly not blackface. We abhor all forms of racism and racist imagery. We will withdraw all of the characters in question from display and circulation.”