Ralph Lauren is sorry. Last week he joined Adele and Jamie Oliver, M&S and The Great British Bake Off as the latest household name to be accused of cultural appropriation. Could I be next?
Lauren is deeply penitent about a cardigan decorated with patterns drawn from Mexico’s pre-Hispanic culture. Beatriz Gutierrez Muller, the wife of Mexico’s president, posted a picture of the eyewatering knit on Instagram, attributing its motifs to the indigenous communities of Contla and Saltillo, and adding: “By copying these designs you are committing plagiarism, which is illegal and immoral.” Social media really hates a cultural appropriator, so, the day after being denounced, the spooked US fashion house pledged that “all new products using indigenous designs will be created under a model of
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