“Hey Ralph: we already realized that you really like Mexican designs (…). However, by copying these designs you incur plagiarism, and as you know, plagiarism is illegal and immoral,” he wrote in his account of the Instagram network the wife of President Andrés Manuel López Obrador.
Gutiérrez accompanied his claim with the image of a colorful casual jacket that is displayed in a store with the label “Ralph Lauren”.
By copying these designs you incur plagiarism, and as you know, plagiarism is illegal and immoral
In addition, he explained that the designs used in the garment correspond to textile creations from the communities of Contla, Tlaxcala and Saltillo, Coahuila.
The garment is also sold in several online stores under the name “striped cardigan with a belt” and has an average cost of 300 dollars, found the AFP.
“At least admit it. And hopefully you compensate the damage to the native communities that do this work with love and not for profit millionaires“added the also writer and historian, who coordinates a committee of historical and cultural affairs, on an honorary basis.
For its part, the Ralph Lauren firm said in a statement that the piece had been removed from its portfolio “months ago.”
“We deeply regret that this has happened and, as always, we are open to dialogue on how we can improve,” he said.
“We are surprised to learn that this product is selling (…) When our team discovered months ago that this was in our product line, we issued a strict directive to remove the item from all channels,” argued the US firm.
Mexico denounced in 2021 other fashion houses, such as the Chinese Shein, the Spanish Inditex and the American Anthropologie and Patowl, for using Mexican designs in their garments.
For cultural misappropriation, the country also complained in 2020 about French designer Isabel Marant, who later apologized to the government and an indigenous community in Michoacán.
In 2019, the Ministry of Culture also denounced the firm of Carolina Herrera, a Venezuelan designer based in the United States, for having replicated colorful embroidery typical of the community of Tenango (center).