Fashion designing is all about freedom of expression but one French designer named Jean Touitou hit a nerve that many would say is offensive. During the live narration of his new fall/winter collection, Touitou named the collection “Last N***as in Paris,” referencing Kanye West’s and Jay Z’s hit single “N***as In Paris.” One part of the line featured sweatpants and Timberland boots (which are popular in the African-American community) and a long camel-colored wool coat.
“I call this one look Last N****s in Paris. Why? Because it’s the sweet spot when the hood meets Bertolucci’s movieLast Tango in Paris. So that’s ‘N****s in Paris’ and Last N****s in Paris. [Nervous laughter from audience.] Oh, I am glad some people laughed with me. Yes, I mean, it’s nice to play with the strong signifiers. The Timberland here is a very strong ghetto signifier. In the ghetto, it is all the Timberlands, all the big chain. Not at the same time—never; it’s bad taste. So we designed Timberlands with Timberland.” says Touitou.
You may remember this designer from a collection collaboration with rapper/designer Kanye West in 2013. Two designed a 10-piece collection with prices starting out at $120 and sold out instantly.
Style.com reached out to Jean Touitou for clarification on the touchy subject and of course he mentioned his close friendship with black hip hop artist Kanye West. “I am friends with Kanye, and he and I presented a joint collection at the same place, one year ago, and that this thing is only a homage to our friendship. As a matter of fact, when I came up with this idea, I wrote to him, with the picture of the look and the name I was giving to it, and he wrote back immediately saying something like, ‘I love this vibe.’”
Kanye West had spent all of 2013 preaching about the racism in the fashion industry and how he was unable to sit at the table when it came to designing his own collections, so why would he excuse this upfront act of racism and stereotypes? White media thinks it is okay to make bold and disrespectful gestures and statements towards or about African-Americans because they claim a close friendship with a black entertainer, who gives them a pass because they think the artist is the “voice” for black America. This is not the first a white celebrity used the N-word in a “jokingly” way. In 2012, actress Gwyneth Paltrow tweeted a photo of herself on stage at the “Watch The Throne” concert with the caption saying “N***as in Paris for real!” When she received backlash, Paltrow wrote “Hold Up. It’s the title of the song!” but by then she had already started an uproar. Gwyneth, just like Jean Touitou felt that the use of the N-word was not offensive because it is the name of the song called “N***as in Paris” because of their relationships with black celebrities.
Why do white people who are “down” think it is okay and why does black America let them slide?
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