John Galliano Loses Title Over Anti-Semitic Rants
French President Francois Hollande reportedly has stripped fashion designer John Galliano of his Legion of Honor medal because of anti-Semitic behavior.
French media reported that a presidential decree published on France’s official journal said Galliano may no longer wear the medal – France’s highest honor – which he received in 2009.
Last year Galliano, a British citizen, lost his job as design director at Dior after he was filmed making anti-Semitic statements.
A French court later ruled he had made “public insults based on origin, religious affiliation, race or ethnicity” in several incidents.
In one incident, Galliano stated his love for Adolf Hitler at a Paris bar and told people he believed were Jewish that their mothers should have been gassed.
He blamed his outbursts on addictions to drugs and alcohol. Galliano is 51 years old.
The text of the decree, which was published on Aug. 20, was not immediately available as French authorities issue such announcements only in printed form.
It’s our birthday and we’re still celebrating!
We hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, we’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s independent Jewish news.
This week we celebrate 129 years of the Forward. We’re proud of our origins as a Yiddish print publication serving Jewish immigrants. And we’re just as proud of what we’ve become today: A trusted source of Jewish news and opinion, available digitally to anyone in the world without paywalls or subscriptions.
We’ve helped five generations of American Jews make sense of the news and the world around them — and we aren’t slowing down any time soon.
As a nonprofit newsroom, reader donations make it possible for us to do this work. Support independent, agenda-free Jewish journalism and our board will match your gift in honor of our birthday!
Support our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
