WTFashion: Gucci Apologizes After Receiving Backlash For Blackface Sweater

On Wednesday, social media went into a frenzy after noticing a luxury brand was selling a sweater that resembled blackface. 

The $900 black balaclava sweater from Gucci’s 2018 fall/winter collection features big red lips on the opening of the turtleneck. 

While some people saw nothing wrong with the sweater, many found it very offensive and were not going to let the luxury brand continue to profit off such ignorance. 

After receiving a lot of backlash over the sweater, the luxury brand released a statement. 

“Gucci deeply apologizes for the offense caused by the balaclava jumper. We can confirm that the item has been immediately removed from our online store and all physical stores,” says the luxury brand. 

They continued, “ We consider diversity to be a fundamental value to be fully upheld, respected, 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.”

Gucci is the latest brand to withdraw pieces following backlash over racist imagery. Back in December, Prada pulled their “Otto Toto” keychain after Twitter users pointed out its similarity to blackface imagery, while H&M was heavily criticized following insensitive styling of its “Coolest Monkey In The Jungle.”