Authors
Kushel HM is a mechanical engineer-turned-journalist, who loves all things football, tennis and films. He was with the news desk at the Hindustan Times, Mumbai, before joining Newschecker.
Pankaj Menon is a fact-checker based out of Delhi who enjoys ‘digital sleuthing’ and calling out misinformation. He has completed his MA in International Relations from Madras University and has worked with organisations like NDTV, Times Now and Deccan Chronicle online in the past.
Claim
Protesters throw clothes from fashion giant Zara outside its New York store for allegedly being insensitive to Gaza war victims in a controversial ad campaign, which was later retracted.
Fact
Viral video is not related to the Israel-Hamas conflict, shows an AI-generated ad by an online luxury goods marketplace, promoting sustainable fashion.
Several social media users are sharing a video, which purportedly shows piles of clothes from the Spanish fashion brand Zara discarded by Americans on the street in front of the retailer’s store in New York City, in protest against the company’s controversial advertisement campaign allegedly mocking victims in war-torn Gaza.
The archived versions of the tweets can be seen here and here.
Zara Withdraws Ad
Zara reportedly retracted its advertising campaign, “The Jacket”, featuring mannequins with missing limbs and statues wrapped in white shroud after it prompted calls by pro-Palestine activists and online commenters for a boycott of the fashion retailer.The Spanish brand later issued a public apology following the backlash, clarifying that the campaign, which was conceptualised in July and photographed in September, presented “a series of images of unfinished sculptures in a sculptor’s studio and was created with the sole purpose of showcasing craftmade garments in an artistic context”. “Unfortunately, some customers felt offended by these images, which have now been removed, and saw in them something far from what was intended when they were created,” the Zara statement read.
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Fact Check
Newschecker ran a keyword search for “Zara protest NYC”, which led us to multiple news reports, seen here and here, about the protests outside Zara stores across the world by pro-Palestinian demonstrators. We, however, did not come across any protest that involved dumping of Zara clothes in front of the store in the US, as seen in the viral video, raising our doubts.
We then ran a reverse image search of keyframes of the video, which led us to this Instagram post, uploaded on November 16, 2023 and updated on December 13, 2023, by Vestiaire Collective, an online marketplace for people to buy and sell luxury, pre-owned fashion products. The video ends with a call to “Join the circular moment”.
A screengrab of the viral video shows the words “Vestiaire Collective”, confirming it is the same clip.
“Our Fast Fashion Ban campaign was launched on November 16th, nearly a month before the Zara Campaign. Vestiaire Collective encourages consumers to be more thoughtful about their purchases and refrain from buying brands like Zara, Uniqlo, Mango and to “Think First, Buy Second”, which is the tagline of our initiative. The Fast Fashion Ban, now in its second year, is part of our mission to transform the fashion industry for a more sustainable future,” read the Instagram post, adding, “With 92 million tons of textiles sent to landfill every year, now’s the time to act. That’s why, from today, we’re banning another 30 fast fashion brands from Vestiaire Collective, including Zara, H&M, Gap, Abercrombie & Fitch, Mango, Urban Outfitters, and Uniqlo.”
We then came across this write-up on Marketing-Interactive, dated November 20, 2023, stating that Vestiaire Collective has unveiled a new movement to champion sustainable fashion.
“Launching a global campaign, titled “Think first, buy second”, the company will be removing brands such as H&M, Zara, Uniqlo, Mango, Gap from its platform. The movement aims to bring to light the pressing issues of textile waste and fashion overconsumption,” read the article, adding that the campaign is leveraging on AI technology, will include a video and visuals of piles of clothes located in some of the most recognisable locations such as Marina Bay Sands, Times Square, or The Eiffel Tour to replicate what textile waste and landfills would look like in consumers’ own countries.
“The company also posted a video on its social media page, panning to show the view of New York City, with the logo of different fast fashion brands appearing on the billboards as pieces of clothing fall from the sky to fill up the streets,” read the article, sharing the same video. Similar articles can be seen here and here, confirming that the viral video is not related to the protests against Zara.
“You’re scrolling through social media and you see something shocking: New York’s Times Square is overrun with piles and piles of clothes as tall as buildings. Clothes are falling from the sky. At first glance, you’re confused. At second glance, you realise that like most crazy things you’ve seen on the internet recently, it’s AI. And it’s an ad by Vestiaire Collective,” read an article by Trueself, dated December 8, 2023.
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Conclusion
Ad campaign to promote sustainable fashion falsely claimed to show protest against fashion brand Zara in New York for allegedly mocking Gaza war victims.
Result: False
Sources
Instagram post, Vestiaire Collective, November 16, 2023
Marketing Interactive article, November 20, 2023
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Authors
Kushel HM is a mechanical engineer-turned-journalist, who loves all things football, tennis and films. He was with the news desk at the Hindustan Times, Mumbai, before joining Newschecker.
Pankaj Menon is a fact-checker based out of Delhi who enjoys ‘digital sleuthing’ and calling out misinformation. He has completed his MA in International Relations from Madras University and has worked with organisations like NDTV, Times Now and Deccan Chronicle online in the past.
