Celebrity

Many accuse the fashion brand of glorifying suicide after showing off a hoodie that features a noose around the neck during London Fashion Week.

• Feb 20, 2019

AceShowbiz - Burberry recently sparked fury among people after showing off a hoodie that featured a noose around the neck during London Fashion Week, with many accusing the brand of glorifying suicide. The fashion brand quickly pulled the item from its collection and issued an apology.

In a statement sent to Fortune, Burberry CEO Marco Gobbetti said, "We are deeply sorry for the distress caused by one of the products that featured in our A/W 2019 runway collection Tempest. I called Ms. Kennedy to apologize as soon as I became aware of this on Monday and we immediately removed the product and all images that featured it."

Gobetti stated that the design of the clothing was actually inspired by "marine theme" that ran throughout the collection, but still admitted that it was "insensitive." He added, "The experience Ms. Kennedy describes does not reflect who we are and our values. We will reflect on this, learn from it and put in place all necessary actions to ensure it does not happen again."

People started coming at Burberry after Liz Kennedy, who took part at the show, expressed her frustration with the brand for featuring the hoodie. "Suicide is not fashion. It is not glamorous nor edgy," she said on Instagram. "Let's not forget about the horrifying history of lynching either. There are hundreds of ways to tie a rope and they chose to tie it like a noose completely ignoring the fact that it was hanging around a neck."

Kennedy added that she was further disturbed by the fact that the show's staff "briefly hung one from the ceiling (trying to figure the knot) and were laughing about it in the dressing room." When she attempted to address this with someone, she was instead told that, "It's fashion. Nobody cares about what's going on in your personal life so just keep it to yourself."

Concluding her post, she wrote, "I did not post this to disrespect the designer or the brand but to simply express an issue I feel very passionate about."

Lihat postingan ini di Instagram

@burberry @riccardotisci17 Suicide is not fashion. It is not glamorous nor edgy and since this show is dedicated to the youth expressing their voice, here I go. Riccardo Tisci and everyone at Burberry it is beyond me how you could let a look resembling a noose hanging from a neck out on the runway. How could anyone overlook this and think it would be okay to do this especially in a line dedicated to young girls and youth. The impressionable youth. Not to mention the rising suicide rates world wide. Let’s not forget about the horrifying history of lynching either. There are hundreds of ways to tie a rope and they chose to tie it like a noose completely ignoring the fact that it was hanging around a neck. A massive brand like Burberry who is typically considered commercial and classy should not have overlooked such an obvious resemblance. I left my fitting extremely triggered after seeing this look (even though I did not wear it myself). Feeling as though I was right back where I was when I was going through an experience with suicide in my family. Also to add in they briefly hung one from the ceiling (trying to figure out the knot) and were laughing about it in the dressing room. I had asked to speak to someone about it but the only thing I was told to do was to write a letter. I had a brief conversation with someone but all that it entailed was “it’s fashion. Nobody cares about what’s going on in your personal life so just keep it to yourself” well I’m sorry but this is an issue bigger than myself. The issue is not about me being upset, there is a bigger picture here of what fashion turns a blind eye to or does to gain publicity. A look so ignorantly put together and a situation so poorly handled. I am ashamed to have been apart of the show. #burberry. I did not post this to disrespect the designer or the brand but to simply express an issue I feel very passionate about.

Sebuah kiriman dibagikan oleh 🦎 (@liz.kennedy_) pada 17 Peb 2019 jam 9:51 PST

Several celebrities have also joined calling out Burberry for the controversial hoodie, including T.I. and "America's Next Top Model" judge J Alexander.