In the not so distant past, beloved couturiers Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana made offensive comments regarding in vitro fertilization by remarking offhandedly in an interview, “The only family is the traditional one. No chemical offsprings and rented uterus…” This prompted them to lose favor with a significant portion of their valued customers/demographic.
Mercifully, this anti-D&G sentiment hasn’t stopped them from going for the gold of provocation by creating a new collection of abayas and hijabs just in time for the spring season. Punctuated by florals and paisley prints (something Anna Wintour might find a bit cliche), the line is presumably going to cost a mound of money and is a somewhat overt play at capitalizing on a current trend in fashion right now: incorporating Muslim culture into the “average person’s” consciousness. This was also done recently by H&M when they featured Muslim model Mariah Idrissi in their fall catalogue.
As hating Muslims in America becomes a seemingly ever closer step toward imitating what happened to the Jews in Germany, it seems that fashion brands understand the importance of “normalizing” their religion and associated sartorial requirements. At the same time, is the grafting of a culture ever uplifting? Just look at the history of Navajo prints stolen from Native Americans.
