Courtesy of Prada
The New York City Commission on Human Rights and Prada have reached a settlement over the widely criticised ‘Pradamalia’ line of black monkey key chains released in 2018 that will include sensitivity training for the Italian luxury house, according to the New York Times. While the brand had already taken steps to bring more representation to the business, like the establishment of a Diversity and Inclusion Advisory Council, chaired by artists Ava DuVernay and Theaster Gates, the formal agreement signals a new era in accountability for brands.
According to a settlement reached between the American Human Rights body and Prada, all New York employees will be receiving sensitivity training, including the septuagenarian matriarch of the Prada and Miu Miu empires, Miuccia Prada and her husband Patrizio Bertelli. The company is also to appoint a diversity and inclusion officer within the next 120 days to review the brand’s designs before they reach the US public. The Diversity and Inclusion Advisory Council, which Prada created in February 2019, is to continue for at least six years under the agreement.
With the Prada settlement as a blueprint, the New York human rights body is casting a wider net. They are reportedly also in talks with Gucci and Dior— who have had their own sensitivity issues.