The Italian luxury brand said it “deeply apologizes for the offense caused by the wool balaclava jumper,” in a Twitter post on Wednesday.
The top, which is no longer on the company’s website, is a black turtleneck sweater that pulls up over the bottom half of the face with a cut out and oversized red lips around the mouth.
“We can confirm that the item has been immediately removed from our online store and all physical stores,” Gucci said in a statement on Wednesday. “We are fully committed to increasing diversity throughout our organization and turning this incident into a powerful learning moment for the Gucci team and beyond.”
The sweater had been slammed on social media, with Twitter users saying it resembled blackface and expressing emotions ranging from exasperation to outrage.
One user noted that the controversy was taking place during Black History Month and expressed skepticism that it would stop people from buying the brand.
Northam initially apologized for the photo, saying he was in it, without specifying which person he was. He later denied he was in the yearbook photo but admitted he had once dressed in blackface during a dance contest in San Antonio.
Northam met Wednesday with Southern Christian Leadership Conference President Dr. Charles Steele Jr. and Dr. Bernard LaFayette, chairman of the SCLC board, two well-known black leaders from a group once led by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. The meeting was an effort to better understand how he can move past the scandal that has engulfed his office, an adviser to the Democrat tells CNN.
Source : Nbcnewyork
