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John Galliano Fired From Dior After Allegations Of Anti-Semitism

Jen Chung

Published Mar 1, 2011

Modified Mar 1, 2011

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Jen Chung

Published Mar 1, 2011

Modified Mar 1, 2011

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Last week, fashion house Christian Dior suspended its iconoclastic designer, John Galliano, after he was accused of making anti-Semitic statements at a Paris cafe. Today, after an undated video of Galliano saying he loved Hitler and other allegations of anti-Semitism piled up, Dior announced that Galliano was fired. CEO Sidney Toledano condemned the bad boy designer "in the strongest terms" and said Galliano's behavior was "in total contradiction with the essential values that have always been defended by the Christian Dior house."

The Dior statement also cited the "odious comments" in the video, which show Galliano saying to customers at cafe La Perle, "I love Hitler... People like you would be dead. Your mothers, your forefathers, would all be f****** gassed." When one of the people he's directing remarks at asks if he has a problem, he says, "With you. You're ugly," and claims he's from "Your a***hole."

Galliano allegedly told a woman at La Perle last Thursday that she was a "dirty Jew face"; Galliano, who has denied he's anti-Semitic, is accusing her of defamation. The NY Times notes, "French law makes it a crime to incite racial hatred; the statute has been used in the past to punish anti-Semitic remarks."

Academy Award winner Natalie Portman, who is Jewish (born in Israel) and just signed a deal to represent a Dior perfume was asked about Galliano's comments after winning her Oscar, but an Oscar press person refused to let her say anything. She has since released a statement, "I am deeply shocked and disgusted by the video of John Galliano's comments that surfaced today. In light of this video, and as an individual who is proud to be Jewish, I will not be associated with Mr. Galliano in any way. I hope at the very least, these terrible comments remind us to reflect and act upon combating these still-existing prejudices that are the opposite of all that is beautiful."

The "Derelicte" fashion in Zoolander is a spoof on Galliano's 2000 collection, which was inspired by homeless people in France.

Tagged

anti semitism

christian dior

john galliano

Jen Chung

Jen Chung is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.

Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations

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