Galliano Fired, Natalie Portman Speaks Out
Image by Getty Images
Anti-Semitism is out of style this season.
Image by Getty Images
Designer John Galliano has been fired by the Christian Dior fashion label after he was caught on tape declaring “I love Hitler,” and merrily telling a Jewish couple that their relatives could have been “f—ing gassed.”
Galliano was suspended by Dior last week following initial reports about an anti-Semitic tirade in a Parisian restaurant. The video clip, which went viral online yesterday, appears to have sealed the designer’s fate with the company.
Freshly minted Oscar winner Natalie Portman, who also endorses Dior’s Miss Cherie Dior perfume, surely influenced the decision yesterday when she released a statement expressing “shock” and “disgust” over Galliano’s statements. “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,” she wrote. “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.”
Now that Galliano has more free time on his hands, The Shmooze hopes he’ll take up Portman’s call for reflection. Question number one to consider: What fate might Hitler have sought for a gay fashion designer?
I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning journalism this Passover.
In this age of misinformation, our work is needed like never before. We report on the news that matters most to American Jews, driven by truth, not ideology.
At a time when newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall. That means for the first time in our 126-year history, Forward journalism is free to everyone, everywhere. With an ongoing war, rising antisemitism, and a flood of disinformation that may affect the upcoming election, we believe that free and open access to Jewish journalism is imperative.
Readers like you make it all possible. Right now, we’re in the middle of our Passover Pledge Drive and we still need 300 people to step up and make a gift to sustain our trustworthy, independent journalism.
Make a gift of any size and become a Forward member today. You’ll support our mission to tell the American Jewish story fully and fairly.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO
Join our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
Only 300 more gifts needed by April 30
