Dior Accused of Racism by China Over ‘Slanted Eye’ Photo
French fashion house Dior has been urged to apologize to China for using a photo that shows an Asian model pulling up the corner of her eye in an advert.
Luxury brand Dior has been accused of racism on Chinese social media over the photograph of an Asian model slanting her eye in a recent advertising campaign.
The photograph was used to promote Dior’s new makeup collection and shows the model pulling up her eye with the caption: “Channel your feline fierceness”.
Dior emphasized Asian Eye. https://t.co/3SPa3qLSZ2 pic.twitter.com/i9Eb8yXuac
— HiraganaNinja 🇯🇵🥷 (@hiragananinja) April 13, 2023
Dior reportedly posted the image on its Instagram account last week, before promptly removing the photograph from the fashion brand’s social media account following backlash from internet users in China.
However, despite swiftly taking the image down, Dior has not made any public comment or apology about the photograph.
According to The Times of London, the fashion brand’s response has reportedly angered members of the Chinese public and prompted the Chinese Communist Party’s newspaper, the Global Times, to call on the designer to offer an official apology.
“If Dior truly respects the Asia market, it should have the basic respect and humbleness, instead of trying to weather publicity crises by pretending it didn’t know,” the Global Times writes in an editorial.
“Such as an attitude will eventually cause irreparable damage to its reputation.
“We hope Dior can face the mistake and give a sincere apology and response to the Asian society, and make some clear explanations of how it would prevent similar mistakes in the future.”
This is not the first time that Dior has been the subject of controversy in China over images used in the company’s advertising campaign.
In 2021, PetaPixel reported on how Dior faced backlash from its Chinese market after the company ran a photo featuring a stern-looking Asian woman with a Dior bag. Internet users in China accused the photograph of perpetuating Western stereotypes of Asian faces.
Dior removed the photo and stated that the luxury brand had always respected the feelings of the Chinese people. Chinese photographer Chen Man, who shot the image for the Dior campaign, also apologized.
