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'He hated fat women': Internet slams Met Gala for honoring Karl Lagerfeld despite 'misogynistic' legacy

Internet users called out Met Gala for paying tribute to late Karl Lagerfeld while disregarding his alleged sexist past

NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK: This year, the theme for Meta Gala 2023 is ‘Karl Lagerfeld: A Line of Beauty’ paying tribute to legendary German designer Karl Lagerfeld, who died on February 19, 2019, at the age of 85. While many arrived at the invitation-only fundraiser wearing extravagant outfits filled with pearls, and starched collars and followed the black and white color code to honor the designer, there were many who chose not the celebrate Lagerfeld, who once said, “No one wants to see curvy women.”

Many models protested the controversial decision to honor the designer, who worked with brands like Chanel, Fendi, Balmain, and more, for the 2023 Met Gala. Sara Ziff, the founder of the Model Alliance, which was founded in 2012 to advocate for fashion workers’ rights and safety, told Jezebel, “The choice to honor Lagerfeld embodies the dissonance of an industry that claims to be progressive, that celebrates body positivity and survivors on the one hand, and then reveres figures like [Lagerfeld] without even acknowledging their regressive views.”

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Prior to the event, HF Twit Met Gala posted a tweet that stated that they would not be holding their digital companion event to the annual Costume Institute Benefit. The tweet read, "As we approach the first Monday of May, the hf Twitter met gala team would like to announce that we will not be celebrating this year’s met gala as our values don’t align with the selection of Karl Lagerfeld as the theme. We hope to celebrate with our community again soon." 

Why is Karl Lagerfeld controversial?

Apart from his quirky style statement, Lagerfeld was known for his remarks, particularly about women’s bodies. Even though he, himself, struggled with his body issues, losing 92 lbs in a year, which he described in a 2005 book titled ‘The Karl Lagerfeld Diet,’ as per Time, Lagerfeld frequently objectified and provided unsolicited views. He described Adele as being "too fat" when he asked about his opinions on female pop stars. He said, as per The Guardian, “She is a little too fat, but she has a beautiful face and a divine voice." And then commented on then Vogue cover star Lana del Rey saying "Not bad at all. She looks very much like a modern-time singer. In her photos she is beautiful. Is she a construct with all her implants?"

In a 2009 interview, he said “no one wants to see curvy women,” states Vox. The designer in 2012 said Pippa Middleton should “only show her back” and said she “struggles” with her looks. He said, as per Telegraph, “Kate Middleton has a nice silhouette and she is the right girl for that boy. I like that kind of woman, I like romantic beauties. On the other hand, her sister struggles. I don't like the sister's face. She should only show her back." During a French talk show in 2017, Lagerfeld, who was not Jewish, said, “One cannot – even if there are decades between them – kill millions of Jews so you can bring millions of their worst enemies in their place. I know someone in Germany who took a young Syrian and after four days said, ‘The greatest thing Germany invented was the Holocaust’," reports The Guardian.

'If you don’t want your pants pulled about, don’t become a model'

A year before his death, he also made headlines for his comments about the #MeToo movement, claiming he was “fed up” with it as he defended stylist Karl Templer, who was accused of sexual misconduct by multiple models. He told, as stated by The Hollywood Reporter, “What shocks me most in all of this are the starlets who have taken 20 years to remember what happened, Not to mention the fact there are no prosecution witnesses." He added, "I read somewhere that now you must ask a model if she is comfortable with posing. It’s simply too much, from now on, as a designer, you can’t do anything,” and defended Templer, who aggressively pulled down their underwear without asking, saying, “It’s unbelievable. If you don’t want your pants pulled about, don’t become a model! Join a nunnery, there’ll always be a place for you in the convent. They’re recruiting even!” 

Since the news of the theme broke out, many continued to object to the theme chosen which was announced by Vogue’s editor-in-chief Anna Wintour. Writer Saeed Jones wrote on Twitter, "Oooh, people can show up on the red carpet and recite their favorite Karl Lagerfeld quotes about fat people, sexual assault, immigrants and the Holocaust. So many to choose from. Bravo, Anna Wintour." HFT Met Gala coordinator @raphlecia expressed, as per Time, "A lot of us are actually part of the communities that Karl Lagerfeld has targeted in his hateful speech. And a lot of the people who participate in our event are part of those communities as well. It’s not that we’re not acknowledging his legacy and we’re not denying it either, but part of his legacy are the harmful things that he’s said and we don’t really want to partake in celebrating that.”

'Karl Lagerfeld was a misogynist'

Editor and writer Emily Kirkpatrick said, "Karl produced an incredible amount of very influential and important work but he was also an asshole with some really bad ideas and some really racist, misogynistic, and homophobic opinions about pretty much every topic imaginable. It’s easier for us to consume pretty things without reckoning with the horrible story behind them." Many netizens were also quick to condemn the celebration. One wrote, "In honor of the Met Gala theme, here are fun things Karl Lagerfeld has said. He said Adele was too fat to be pretty. Called Heidi Klum heavy. He had his models in blackface in 2010. His response to metoo was telling women to join a convent. But sure go ahead and celebrate him." Another backed up by saying, "Miss me with the #MetGala2023 pics. Karl Lagerfeld was a misogynist who REALLY hated fat women, repeatedly dismissed the #metoo movement, said women who didn’t want to be groped should’ve been nuns not models, and branched out later into gross comments about Muslim refugees." One more wrore, "This year they celebrated the legacy of designer Karl Lagerfeld. They kind of maybe just left out his record of misogyny, fat phobia, racism, and homophobia. Was he an influential artist in the fashion industry? Yes. Was he a shitty person? Also yes." While a user commented, "fat people and black people who showed up at the met are the only people that matter to me tonight. I hope Karl Lagerfeld is rotting in hell."

This article contains remarks made on the Internet by individual people and organizations. MEAWW cannot confirm them independently and does not support claims or opinions being made online.