# Gucci Blackface Balaclava Controversy The Gucci Blackface Balaclava Controversy was the February 2019 backlash against an $890 black wool balaclava sweater from Gucci's Fall Winter 2018-2019 collection whose red-lipped mouth opening looked like blackface makeup. The luxury brand pulled the item and apologized after Twitter outrage, with the story landing alongside the Ralph Northam blackface scandal in Virginia. ## Overview The Gucci Blackface Balaclava Controversy is the February 2019 uproar over a black wool balaclava sweater sold by Gucci for $890, whose roll-up collar covered the lower face and framed the mouth in a wide red lip outline that many viewers read as blackface[1]. The piece was part of Gucci's Fall Winter 2018-2019 line and had been on sale for months before it went viral[2]. What made the design so flammable was the specific combination of solid black knit stretched over the face plus the exaggerated red mouth, a pairing that looked like the makeup white performers historically used to caricature Black people[1]. The backlash pushed Gucci to pull the sweater from its online and physical stores and to promise more internal diversity work[2]. ## How It Spread Once the @fuckrashida tweet took off, other users piled on with side-by-side comparisons between the sweater and historical blackface imagery, including posts from @blubuttafly16 and @chrxstianh__[3]. A tweet from a user identified as King James asking "What's going on here @Gucci this is blatant Disrespect #Blackface" went up shortly before the brand's apology[2]. Gucci issued a statement late on February 6th saying it "deeply apologizes for the offense caused by the wool balaclava jumper" and confirmed the item was removed from its online store and all physical stores, calling the moment a "powerful learning moment"[2]. The story was picked up by NPR[2], Vox[1] and The New York Times[4], and Washington Post columnist Michelle Singletary pointed out that the blowup landed during Black History Month[2]. Days later, Gucci parent company Kering's CEO François-Henri Pinault told the Wall Street Journal that the group had product-review teams focused on the Asian market but nothing equivalent for African American consumers, admitting "that's a mistake"[1]. Coverage tied the sweater story to the concurrent scandal around Virginia Governor Ralph Northam, whose medical school yearbook page showed a person in blackface next to another in a Ku Klux Klan robe[2]. ## Frequently Asked Questions ### What is Gucci Blackface Balaclava Controversy? It is the February 2019 backlash against an $890 Gucci black wool balaclava sweater whose red-lipped mouth opening was widely compared to blackface makeup[1]. ### Where did Gucci Blackface Balaclava Controversy come from? The sweater came from Gucci's Fall Winter 2018-2019 runway show in February 2018[3], but the outrage only exploded on February 6th, 2019 after a viral tweet by @fuckrashida[3]. ### What does Gucci Blackface Balaclava Controversy mean? It refers to the specific incident where Gucci apologized and pulled the wool balaclava jumper after users said its black knit face and bright red lip outline looked like historical blackface caricature[2]. ### How do you use Gucci Blackface Balaclava Controversy? It is usually cited as a case study in luxury fashion racial insensitivity, often alongside similar Prada and Adidas product recalls covered by outlets like The New York Times[4]. ### Is Gucci Blackface Balaclava Controversy still popular? The sweater itself was pulled from stores in February 2019[2], and the episode is now referenced historically as part of the same news cycle as the Ralph Northam blackface scandal[1]. ## References 1. [https://www.vox.com/the-goods/2019/2/7/18215671/gucci-blackface-sweater-apology-prada-virginia]() 2. [https://www.npr.org/2019/02/07/692314950/gucci-apologizes-and-removes-sweater-following-blackface-backlash]() 3. [https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/events/gucci-blackface-balaclava-controversy]() 4. [https://www.nytimes.com/2019/02/07/business/gucci-blackface-adidas-apologize.html]() --- Source: https://meme.com/memes/gucci-blackface-balaclava-controversy Published by meme.com — The Internet Meme Library