French label under fire over ‘Don’t Shoot’ t-shirt inspired by Lebanese war
French label under fire over ‘Don’t Shoot’ t-shirt inspired by Lebanese war
DUBAI: French label Vetements has come under fire online for featuring a T-shirt that read “Don’t shoot” in Arabic, French and English,at its Spring/Summer 2020 show last week.
The t-shirt is a replica of one worn by journalists in Lebanon in 1982’s Israeli invasion of the country.
Adding fuel to the fire is the fact that Emirati fashion label Qasimi released a near identical t-shirt in 2018, which led regional influencers such as Tamara Al-Gabbani and the designer himself to take to Instagram with angry comments.
Speaking to Vogue Arabia this week, Khalid bin Sultan Al-Qasimi, who doesn’t own copyright for the phrase, said: “I understand what they are doing. It’s about consumerism. But it’s a complete f*** you to the region … I used that print to highlight the plight of something going on in the Middle East. For Vetements to use it in such a flippant and provocative manner; I don’t think they realize what these words mean to us Arabs.”
Vetements designer Demna Gvasalia is no stranger to controversy, having come under sire in 2016 for his t-shirt emblazoned with the DHL logo.
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