In 2018, part of Gucci’s Fall/Winter collection had the clothing item displayed above in their catalog, however, people took it the wrong way when they realized what it represented. The piece was called a “Wool Balaclava Jumper” in their catalog. Many people believed that the sweater is very similar to blackface and therefore was very offensive.

The timing of the controversy was very ironical as well, as the situation began to gain traction in February 0f 2019 which is also Black History Month. Washington Post columnist Michelle Singletary stated how while we have one month every year to celebrate African Americans, America is still a nation that needs a lot of diversity training. Gucci stated in their apology that they will take this experience to educated themselves better on diversity and use it as a powerful learning moment.

I think that the image was not intended to come out the way that it was depicted by the public, but I can see how many people could have been offended by it. I think that Gucci did the right thing by apologizing for the situation and taking it off their shelves. When the public and giant companies are able to come together and listen to each other and fix problems together, it allows our society to learn from their mistakes and better themselves. That is what happened in this whole situation between Gucci and this sweater in their winter line.