Fashion designer Burberry has apologized amid backlash over an item in its new collection that resembled a noose around a model’s neck.
The designer removed the sweatshirt from its Autumn/Winter 2019 runway collection after criticism following a show at London Fashion Week on Sunday.
Model Liz Kennedy harshly criticized the sweatshirt on Instagram, writing that she was “ashamed” to have been part of the designer’s show.
“Suicide is not fashion,” she wrote. “How could anyone overlook this and think it would be okay to do this especially in a line dedicated to young girls and youth.”
Burberry CEO Marco Gobbetti said in a statement that the design was intended to represent the collection’s “marine theme,” according to HuffPost UK.
“We are deeply sorry for the distress caused by one of the products that featured in our A/W 2019 runway collection Tempest,” the statement said. “It was insensitive and we made a mistake.”
{mosads}Kennedy also pointed to “the horrifying history of lynching” in her Instagram post, and said she felt “extremely triggered” because of her personal experience with suicide in her family.
“There are hundreds of ways to tie a rope and they chose to tie it like a noose completely ignoring the fact that it was hanging around a neck,” Kennedy wrote. “A massive brand like Burberry who is typically considered commercial and classy should not have overlooked such an obvious resemblance.”
Kennedy claimed that she tried to address the issue with someone at the show, but was told “Nobody cares about what’s going on in your personal life so just keep it to yourself.”
Burberry is the latest high fashion house to apologize for insensitivity in its designs. Earlier this month, Gucci apologized and pulled a sweater resembling blackface from its collection. And Prada vowed to form a “diversity council” after accusations of racism in its products.