Dolls Kill address their insensitive clothing and inaction towards racism
After backlash and boycotts for fashion brand Dolls Kill erupted over the owner’s comments regarding the ongoing Black Lives Matter protests, the company is giving new statements addressing their actions.
The company’s Instagram has two new posts discussing their actions and addressing their previously sold “goth is white” t-shirt and selling indigenous American headdresses.
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Over the past week, Dolls Kill has faced criticism for owner Shoddy Lynn’s Instagram post using a photo of a line of police officers in front of their store with the caption “Direct Action in its glory” with the Black Lives Matter hashtag.
They’re also facing criticism for previously sold items including an Indigenous American headdress and clothing with phrases like “Dead girls can’t say no” and “Goth is white.”
Shortly after, they offered an initial statement apologizing while pledging to purchase $1 million worth of product from black-owned designers and brands with a portion of proceeds to be donated to Black Lives Matter.
Associates including Broken Promises as well as Killstar severed ties with the company amid these issues being addressed.
Now, Dolls Kill is giving a second set of statements discussing their actions and the clothing items being denounced.
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The first post states that they condemn racism, police brutality, violence, bigotry and hate while saying “The fact that it was unclear where we stand makes it painfully obvious: As a company, we must do better.”
“We have spent the past few days listening to you – talking with our employees, models and customers. We hear you that apologies are not enough,” they write. “We need to do more than be passively ‘not racist’. To move forward, we must acknowledge that we’ve been a part of the problem, take actions to combat systemic racism and proactively push forward change,” the post begins.
They continue by saying despite standing for “rebellion and defiance” they’ve “shied away from using our platform and our voice to stand up for what’s right.” They say they were too late in speaking against the murder of George Floyd and other acts of systemic injustice before him.
Further, they say they are taking steps to do their part in fighting racism and inequality. They outline four steps they’re planning which they say is just the beginning.
As said in their previous statement, they’re pledging to purchase $1 million worth of product from black-owned designers and brands and are donating all profits to charities and organizations of their choice.
They also say they’ve donated $100,000 to the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and will match all employee donations.
They’re pledging to amplify the voices of people of color with their channels and lend their platform to support the Black Lives Matter movement. They are also going to “examine all of our processes across Dolls Kill – from the way we select merchandise to the way we hire.”
The comments were expectedly against the company for not addressing numerous issues brought up throughout the past week.
They gave a followup video post captioned “transparency: Goth is White & Native American headdress” hours later.
In the video, owner Shoddy Lynn starts off by saying she wants to address comments on their statement post.
She brings up the “goth is white” t-shirt saying they sold it from European brand W.I.A. and “according to the brand, their intent was to say that goths can wear any color and not just black.” She says that wasn’t how the Dolls Kill community interpreted it and they removed the product. Afterwards they apparently put more controls in place to look at what they sell with a critical eye.
The headdress is also discussed with her saying “this was a part of a much larger Halloween assortment. It was culturally insensitive and inappropriate to sell. At the time which is now more than six years ago, a customer service rep answered some complaints and one of them was answered pretty immaturely and it was pretty embarrassing.”
She says they had multiple customer service representatives back then and they made a mistake.
You can watch their video below.
View this post on Instagram
Read More: Brands are cutting ties with Dolls Kill over Black Lives Matter comments
To show support through donations, connect with grassroots campaigns and obtain resources for allies, please refer to the links below.
Help the family of George Floyd here.
Fight for Breonna Taylor here.
Help the family of Ahmaud Arbery here.
To sign petitions for George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery and more, click here.
Donate to one or more community bail funds for protesters here.
Click here for more resources for protestors, including pro-bono lawyers.
Visit Movement For Black Lives for additional ways you can help the cause.
Click here to connect with leaders building grassroots campaigns.
Here are some anti-racism resources for allies who want to learn more.For other ways to donate, please head here.
