Gucci又惹出大麻烦了，新毛衣涉嫌种族歧视

MILAN — Luxury fashion is all about breaking codes, creating a new, irresistible message that captivates consumers.

米兰-奢侈品时尚就是打破常规，不断创造新的、令顾客趋之若鹜的理念。

But some of the globe’s top brands have raised eyebrows with designs that have seemingly racist undertones.

但是最近好几个世界顶级大牌却因设计出涉嫌种族歧视的产品而引起众怒。

The latest instance of that was Italian fashion designer Gucci, which produced a black wool balaclava sweater with an oversized collar that pulls over the chin and nose.

最近的一个例子就是意大利时尚设计师Gucci，设计了一款黑色羊毛巴拉克拉瓦毛衣，毛衣有一个覆盖住下巴和鼻子的大尺码的领子。

It includes a slit where the mouth is, ringed with what look like giant red lips. Its similarity to blackface prompted an instant backlash from the public and forced the company to apologize publicly.

毛衣领子在嘴巴的位置上有一个开口，穿上后看起来像一个巨大的红唇。它与黑人面孔的相似迅速引起了公众的抵制，迫使这家公司不得不公开道歉。

Gucci also withdrew the offending garment from sale on websites and stores. It said the incident would be “a powerful learning moment for the Gucci team and beyond.”

Gucci在线上线下都撤回了这款衣服。此次事件会是 “给Gucci团队乃至其他人的一个有力的教训”。

But the question persists: How can fashion houses that thrive on detail miss such critical social cues?

但是我们依旧不解：死扣细节的时尚品牌怎么会在这么严肃的大问题上失误。

“Luxury brands used to be able to get away with provocative and eccentric ads that push the boundaries of our society and culture in the name of being creative and cutting edge,” said Qing Wang, a professor of marketing at Warwick Business School.

“奢侈品牌过去经常能以创造力和创新为由，越过社会和文化的界限，做出的广告挑衅嚣张且离经叛道却无人问责，”华威商学院市场营销专业的教授Qing Wang说到。

“However, a long list of recent incidents have caused public outrage, suggesting that era is now gone or that luxury brands have lost touch with public sentiment. What used to be considered “creativity” has now turned into “bad taste” or even “racist,” he said.

他还提到，“不过，最近发生的一系列的种族歧视事件已经引起了众怒”，这意味着那样的时代已经过去了，又或者是奢侈品牌已经不再享有大众的温情。过去大家眼中的“创造力”现在变成了“糟糕的品味”甚至是“种族歧视”。

He cited other fashion fails that evoked stereotypes, including Dolce & Gabbana’s “slave sandal” in its spring/summer 2016 collection and a recent Burberry campaign for the Chinese New Year that was compared to Asian horror films.

他还援引了其他的改变固有印象的时尚界的失败案例，包括Dolce & Gabbana16年春夏新品中的“奴隶凉鞋”和最近Burberry新出的被判为辱亚视频的一个中国新年特辑。

While many of these incidents have caused immediate social media backlashes, the longer-term impact will take time to measure, and will depend on the brands’ reaction and future sensitivity.

虽然这些视频短期内都迅速受到了社会公众的抵制，但它们的长期影响还需要观察，也取决于这些品牌如何应对和对未来风向的敏锐度。