Victoria’s Secret has made an unfortunate habit of playing to stereotype lately , the most recent of which was a Native American-inspired outfit worn by model Karlie Kloss during the 2012 Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show. The panty-peddlers have officially apologized for the outfit in question.
On November 7, the company sent 20-year-old American model Kloss downt he runway wearing a feather headdress, a buckskin bikini, and turquoise jewelry. This was all apparently meant to represent Thanksgiving or something, but the Native American community wasn’t terribly happy with the misappropriation of their cultural attire.
Via the blog Native Appropriations :
“Besides the daily harm of these ongoing microaggressions for Native folks, the sexualization of Native women continues to be an ignored and continuing epidemic…So Victoria’s Secret, now is the time to apologize. It’s not too late to cut Karlie’s headdressed outfit out and leave it on the editing room floor. This isn’t “fun,” this isn’t a “fantasy” character. This is about our cultures, our bodies, and our lives. Native people demand and deserve far more respect than this.”
Victoria’s Secret’s mea culpa via Facebook :
“We are sorry that the Native American headdress replica used in our recent fashion show has upset individuals. We sincerely apologize as we absolutely had no intention to offend anyone. Out of respect, we will not be including the outfit in any broadcast, marketing materials nor in any other way.”
And Twitter:
We are sorry that the Native American headdress in our fashion show hasupset individuals. The outfit will be removed from the broadcast.
— Victoria’s Secret (@VictoriasSecret) November 10, 2012
Kloss apologized as well:
I am deeply sorry if what I wore during the VS Show offended anyone. I support VS’s decision to remove the outfit from the broadcast.
— Karlie Kloss (@karliekloss) November 11, 2012
Here are some photos of Karlie Kloss in the Native American headdress:
What do you think? Was the Victoria’s Secret Native American-inspired garb worn by model Karlie Kloss offensive? Let us know!