Monday, October 17, 2011

Whats the big deal with Urban Outfitters new 'Navajo' collection??

Thankfully I have girlfriend who is not only smart & gorgeous, but, also current on everything fashion related- something that I am not and will never be. With that said over the last week, there was a lot of media coverage over Urban Outfitters new fall collection of clothing/ accessories inspired by the Navajo Indians, because of a outcry to remove the Navajo label from the products entirely. The Navajo Nation Government or NNG was outraged over the new line presented by the company over their misrepresentation of the tribes 'scared' name and trademark violations. Urban Outfitters countered the claim, stating that that they, along with many other fashion designers have “ultizied the ‘Navajo’ name in previous lines with no backlash from the Native American community and do not understand why this case has accumulated so much backlash”. Personally I do not see any harm or wrong doings here by Urban Outfitters, except I do not hail from a historic tribe that has had to endure many hardships over the last few hundred years- so my opinion does not carry a lot of creditability. Obviously though, I can understand the outrage/POV but I think that in this case there is not much harm being done here by Urban. Urban, like many other fashion designers have utilized Native American designs/culture as inspiration for lines for years, which have always been seen as. However, now because the name, ‘Navajo’ appears on a few accessories and underwear the NNG is ready to declare war on the company. Doesn’t make much sense. In addition, Urban Outfitters carries more than 20 under the ‘Navajo’ label on their website, but the NNG is only disputing the rights to the Navajo Hipster Panty," and Navajo Print Fabric Wrapped Flask- which both feature geometric designs common in Navajo arts and crafts. However this ends, what we should take out of this is company’s and designers should be sensitive to cultural wishes/demands because at the end of the day nobody should feel like they are being disrespected in any way, shape, or form. If you want to read more about this, click here: http://www.news9.com/story/15708170/navajo-calls-out-urban-outfitters-for-its-products

1 comment:

  1. This is similar to the situation that happened with Abercrombie & Fitch several months ago... The company was slammed for creating racist shirts targeted at Asian people. Not only did A&F disrespect the culture, but they also publicly apologized with a statement that was twice as disrespectful.

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