Raury, a soul singer/songwriter from Atlanta, was so fed up with Dolce & Gabbana dressing Melania Trump and mocking protesters that he infiltrated their fashion show and protested the fashion giant from the inside.
The incident occurred during Dolce & Gabbana’s Spring/Summer ’18 show in Italy. Raury was tapped as one of the social media influencers to participate in the designer’s fashion show. As expected, he walked the runway in a yellow D&G sweatshirt and matching shorts. However, once he hit the end of the runway, the singer went rogue, removing his sweatshirt and showcasing the words “PROTEST DG”, “GIVE ME FREEDOM” and “I AM NOT YOUR SCAPEGOAT” across his body. Raury and a few other models raised their fists in solidarity. The singer then disappeared after the show, not joining the other models for photos. As he attempted to escape, he was blocked in and apprehended by security. Fortunately, he was able to eventually get away.
Ironically, just days ago, D&G poked fun at the backlash they had been receiving for their thoughts on gay parenthood and supporting Tump by releasing a line of t-shirts reading “Boycott Dolce & Gabbana.” Up until Raury actually protested, the fashion house took it as a joke. “It’s irony! A joke! People use heavy words very easily these days. There is too much aggression,” Dolce told Vogue. Well, I bet they don’t think it’s a joke now!
When asked what triggered him to protest D&G, Raury says that he felt the brand was making a mockery of the voice of the people. He also wanted it to be known that he did not agree with their views.
“Me, as a young man from Stone Mountain, Georgia, the birthplace of the Klu Klux Klan, I really felt this mockery of boycotting,” he tells GQ. “Who knows, if boycotts didn’t happen, if Rosa Parks and M.L.K. didn’t step up…who knows if I would even exist. Boycotting matters. Boycotting is real. Dolce’s entire campaign says it’s not real. I know that if I walk out there and support or endorse anything that sits next to Trump—orsupportst someone who even makes dinner for Trump or whatever—then that means that I support Trump also. I don’t support Trump.”
Raury says that he did not know about the Melania Trump and “Boycott” t-shirts until he was already in Milan, the day before the show. He tells GQ that he was doing research on the brand to educate himself before walking the runway and that’s when he saw the news articles.
After he left the runway, Raury says security tried to stop him as he attempted to escape.
“I knew I had to get out of there. I didn’t know what could happen to me. I was dealing with a lot of energy. I was thinking: Oh shit, what does this mean? This is their city. They’re some of the most powerful people in this city. This is fueling something against them, and who knows how ruthless they are? So when I walked out of there, I made a beeline to the exit and a security guard wrapped me up. I juked his dumb ass but got stopped at the door. I kept saying, “Don’t touch me. Don’t touch me. The only person I will talk to is my manager, Che.” Che brought me my clothes—I took off all of the Dolce & Gabbana clothes I was wearing and tried to leave. They tried to stop us. They were trying to keep me in there. Why? I’m not stealing anything from you guys, you have everything you gave me. But they had, like, a bar of security in front of the door. I had to run, like, 300 feet up and away from them.”
Check out the entire interview HERE.
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