Marc Jacobs’ latest escapade may have just sent the fashion industry spiraling backward. In a very confusing move, Jacobs closed out New York Fashion Week with a runway of white women wearing faux dreadlocks.
After facing obvious backlash, the fashion designer claimed that cultural appropriation is “nonsense” and that he doesn’t “see color or race.” He also took a indirect jab at women of color for straightening their hair, which immediately invalidated his claims.
The receipt:
Well for one, Mr. Jacobs, cultural appropriation is a thing. If dreadlocks weren’t tied to a culture, then you wouldn’t have had to get faux locks for your white models. You would have surely been able to find white models with dreadlocks. In the same way that black face, yellow face and red face are a thing, cultural appropriation is a thing. There’s a history and a struggle that comes with different factions of identities— something that you clearly don’t understand.
Also, if you were really color blind, why were most of your models white?
Diversity is already an issue in the fashion industry. If you were really color blind, surely you would’ve had the most diverse set of runway models at this year’s New York Fashion Week. So, the people want to know: Why are you not offering opportunities to black women while exploiting black hair for profit? Perhaps it’s because you do see color after all.
The fault doesn’t only land on Marc Jacobs. The person who did the models’ hair claims he wasn’t inspired by a specific culture.
This is a How Sway?! moment if there ever was one. The Cut interviewed Guido Palau, the hairstylist behind Jacobs’ show, about the claims of cultural appropriation. He gave a very similar response to his partner in culture-vulturing:
“I don’t really think about that. I take inspiration from every culture. Style comes from clashing things. It’s always been there — if you’re creative, if you make food, music, and fashion, whatever, you’re inspired by everything. It’s not homogeneous. Different cultures mix all the time. You see it on the street. People don’t dress head-to-toe in just one way.”
When asked if Rastafarian culture was an inspiration he said, “No, not at all.”
But, Twitter isn’t here for any of these excuses.
if Marc Jacobs wanted to add black culture to his fashion why didn’t they just hire black models with actual dreads???
— ️ (@rnbzains) September 15, 2016
Marc Jacobs: “I don’t see color or race”
Also Marc Jacobs: “funny how you don’t criticize women of COLOR for straightening their hair”
— reggie (@1942bs) September 16, 2016
Marc Jacobs doesn’t see color……until it’s time to select the models to walk his runway. pic.twitter.com/muwq3ueBqx
— 🅰️ (@MyLifeAsAD) September 16, 2016
And to top it off, the faux locs are available on Etsy.
