Kanye West has caused controversy at Paris Fashion Week this week after showcasing t-shirts with the slogan ‘White Lives Matter’ on. The Yeezy Season 9 show, billed as a surprise, secret event, took place yesterday and has since been condemned by various public figures.
‘Black Lives Matter’ is a phrase used by anti-racism activists, which arose out of a need to protect Black people who are disproportionately killed by police – and in turn became a rallying cry for activists fighting the ways racism impacts the lives of Black people. ‘White Lives Matter’ is a slogan that was created in response to the movement, often used by white supremacists in an attempt to invalidate and undermine anti-racism campaigning.
What those who support the ’White Lives Matter’ movement fail to understand is that white lives are not in disproportionate danger due to the colour of their skin, and in fact the privilege that comes from having white skin in a white supremacist society means that white lives have always been protected over Black lives. Thus, the phrase has been categorised as a hate statement by the Anti-Defamation League.
Jaden Smith, who attended the show, reportedly left after seeing the slogan used on the runway, tweeting ‘Black Lives Matter’ shortly after.
As his show provoked outcry, Kanye has doubled down. On Instagram, he has been accused of bullying fashion editor Gabriella Karefa-Johnson after the Vogue contributing editor dubbed the show ‘indefensible’. Despite the fact Karefa-Johnson shared her thoughtful attempt to understand West’s reasoning for the ‘White Lives Matter’ stunt, West has posted images of her on his Instagram ridiculing her fashion sense.
Now, Gigi Hadid has jumped to Karefa-Johnson’s defence. ‘[Karefa-Johnson is] one of the most important voices in our industry and could school that disgraceful man in more ways than he knows,’ she posted on Instagram.
Karefa-Johnson had previously posted Instagram Stories from the apocalypse-themed Yeezy show, writing under a video of the sloganized t-shirt, ‘I’m fuming… collecting my thoughts.’
Later, she shared what she suggested was West’s reasoning for the collection, writing: ‘I get what he tried to do – he thought it was Duchampian. It wasn’t. It didn’t land and it was deeply offensive, violent and dangerous.’
Now, with celebrities supporting Karefa-Johnson and condemning West alike, the show has become one of the most talked-about moments of Paris Fashion Week. Some argue that it simply shouldn’t be - that discussion can give problematic ideas undeserved attention.
Others point out that, in this case, West already has a huge, fame-fuelled platform and showed the slogan t-shirts at a high-profile Fashion Show with a potentially global audience. With the attention already on his actions, to ignore the violence messages like ‘White Lives Matter’ can perpetuate in this context also feels irresponsible.
It's no wonder public figures are speaking out then, with Paris Fashion Week now abuzz with reactions.