Taking to the Streets Taking to the Streets

(c) Hassan Hajjaj

We’re excited by this new and unexpected collaboration between Patta and Tommy Hilfiger, which is a strong nod towards the Pan-African Flag as well as Black unity and community. In weaving together the young traditional and the historically young it creates new histories, present times and allows a glimpse at the future that lies ahead.

To celebrate this , the iconic white, red and blue TOMMY colors have been replaced by the traditional Pan-African colors of deep red, black, green and yellow, putting African culture and community self-actualization front and centre of this dual aspiration. The guiding principle here for both was “unity is strength, division is weakness.”

(c) Hassan Hajjaj

The PATTAxTOMMY campaign aims to shine a light on the multifaceted nature of life in inner cities. The videos were captured in Lagos, Nigeria by Nigerian filmmaker Dafe Oboro through his short film, “Two Become One,” with a photographer well known to other Sleek endeavors: Hassan Hajjaj.

The film follows Clarence Breeveld, a Suriname-born man living in the Netherlands, as he attempts to trace the shipping route from Ghana to Suriname traveled by his enslaved ancestors, visiting locations where slave trading took place. Watch “Katibo Yeye” at PattaxTommy.com for a limited time only.

(c) Hassan Hajjaj

What we at Sleek, however, love the most: it’s all for a good cause. Tommy Hilfiger and Patta will donate to several charities long supported by Patta such as Sista Space in London and Black Archives Netherlands and The Good Neighborhood Collective