Burberry Has To Apologize After Making A Hoodie With A Noose Around The Neck

It its case, somebody thought it was a good idea to send a hoodie featuring a noose around the neck down the runway at London Fashion Week. The reaction has been predictably fierce.

"Suicide is not fashion," she wrote. "It it not glamorous or edgy and since this show is dedicated to the youth expressing their voice, here I go. Riccardo Tisci and everyone at Burberry it is beyond me how you could let a look resembling a noose hanging from a neck out on the runway. How could anyone overlook this and think it would be okay to do this especially in a line dedicated to young girls and youth. The impressionable youth. Not to mention the rising suicide rates world wide."

"Let’s not forget about the horrifying history of lynching either," Kennedy continued. "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. A massive brand like Burberry who is typically considered commercial and classy should not have overlooked such an obvious resemblance."

"I left my fitting extremely triggered after seeing this look (even though I did not wear it myself) ... I had asked to speak to someone about it but the only thing I was told to do was to write a letter. I had a brief conversation with someone but all that it entailed was “it’s fashion. Nobody cares about what’s going on in your personal life so just keep it to yourself” well I’m sorry but this is an issue bigger than myself."

Even fans of Burberry couldn't stand behind the house on this one, with one writing "I've been such a Burberry fan for years, but this is just embarrassing and horribly distasteful."

Others had history lessons for Burberry.

"We are deeply sorry for the distress caused by one of the products that featured in our A/W 2019 runway collection," said Burberry's CEO, Marco Gobbetti, in a statement, according to [CNN'(https://www.cnn.com/style/article/burberry-noose-hoodie-scli-gbr-intl/index.html). "Though the design was inspired by the marine theme that ran throughout the collection, it was insensitive and we made a mistake."

"I am so deeply sorry for the distress that has been caused as a result of one of the pieces in my show on Sunday," he said. "While the design was inspired by a nautical theme, I realize that it was insensitive. It was never my intention to upset anyone. It does not reflect my values nor Burberry's and we have removed it from the collection. I will make sure that this does not happen again."

There are all kinds of knots associated with nautical themes that aren't nooses and don't have their history, as many folks pointed out. So it seems that another big fashion house will have to do some serious damage control for an easily prevented self-inflicted wound.