Marc Jacobs has responded to critics who blasted him on social media for styling all of his models with faux dreadlocks at New York Fashion Week.
Some detractors on social media chided the designer because he sent a mostly white roster of models down the runway on Sept. 15 with the hairstyle.
Gigi and Bella Hadid, Kendall Jenner and Karlie Kloss were among the white models with the hairstyle. The black models were Jourdan Dunn, Ellen Rosa and Binx Walton.
Taking to Instagram, Jacobs defended his creative decision and called the reaction “nonsense.”
“All who cry ‘cultural appropriation’ or whatever nonsense about any race or skin color wearing their hair in any particular style or manner — funny how you don’t criticize women of color for straightening their hair,” Jacobs commented on a photo posted on his brand’s account. “I respect and am inspired by people and how they look. I don’t see color or race — I see people.”
Some of the critics who slammed the designer for “cultural appropriation” cited instances of discrimination and other repercussions against black people who wear natural hairstyles.
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An Instagram user who responded to Jacobs’ remarks highlighted the issue: “Black women who straighten their hair were forced to conform to those standards. A form of assimilation. I’m from Canada but in America if your hair is unkept, in styles such as dreads, Afros, cornrows, black women lose jobs and opportunities, and they also get ridiculed like Zendaya.”
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