Mexicaanse staat Oaxaca beschuldigt Adidas van culturele toe-eigening vanwege nieuwe sandalen

MEXICO-Authorities in the southern Mexican state of Oaxaca accused the sportswear brand Adidas on Wednesday of cultural appropriation after the launch of a sandal model that, according to them, is a copy of a traditional design from that region.

The state government and a local legislator reported that the launch of the Oaxaca Slip-On model, made by the American designer with Mexican Roots Willy Chavarria in collaboration with Adidas, is not approved by and does not give recognition to the original makers.

“The company Adidas, together with designer Willy Chavarria, has appropriated the unique design of the traditional Huaraches (Sandals) of the population of Villa Hidalgo Yalalag,” said Isaías Carranza, a local representative of Zapoteek descent, on his Facebook page on Wednesday.

Salomón Jara, Governor of Oaxaca, also spoke about the case on Tuesday during a press conference. He confirmed that the footwear is a ‘reinterpretation of the Huarachemodel’, but that the design comes from the state, showing images of the sandals released by the German brand.

He also threatened with legal steps against Chavarria.

“This Huarache is from Yalalag (…) We are also going to ask our brothers from Yalalag to work together to submit an indictment against the artist,” Jara added during the press conference.

The Ministry of Culture and Art of Oaxaca reported in a statement that the adoption of cultural elements of indigenous peoples without permission for commercial purposes “means a violation of their collective rights”.

It therefore required that adidas “immediately stops the sale of the Oaxaca slip-on model”, a process of “dialogue and repair of the damage” starts with the community of Yalalag, and publicly recognizes the origin of the design.

Chavarria, who emphasizes his Chicano descent in his creations, was discredited at the end of June after the Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele accused him of glorifying “criminals” during one of his shows at the Paris Fashion Week.

During that fashion show, several tattooed men knelt in white T-shirts and shorts, which reminded us of the attitude imposed on prisoners in the Centro de Confinamiento del Terrorismo (Cecot), the maximum secure prison built by Bukele to lock up gangs.

In recent years, Mexico has sued the cultural appropriation and the unauthorized use of the art of his indigenous peoples such as the Chinese Shein, Spanish Zara and Venezuelan Carolina Herrera.