Sana Safinaz responds to ‘racist’ campaign

KARACHI: Lawn season is at its peak and designers are promoting their lawn campaigns with full force. Sana Safinaz were also amongst those who shot for their ‘luxury lawn’ at an exotic locale, which was the Masai Mara National Reserve in Kenya. However, they decided to use the African people as props for their shoot. This stirred up a controversy and people lashed out to them for being ‘racist.

The designers have taken to social media to respond to people’s comments and have released an official statement in their defence.

The statement read, “Recently, Sana Safinaz launched its new collection. This was inspired by the colours and traditional fashions of Africa. The team at Sana Safinaz travelled to Kenya to experience the culture and lives of the Masai people first hand. We also organised a shoot to support the new collection and employed local people. We are proud of the work we did with the Masai, especially the women and stand by it.”

“The clothing brand further declared that they understand ethical tourism. “Avenues promoting responsible tourism exist that encourage and support local projects,” the team stated. “Widows in traditional Masai culture are not allowed to re-marry and cannot own property. Tourist-driven employment gives these women an opportunity to earn a living.”

Sana Safinaz also stated that the funds provided by them would go towards the building of a school thus, promoting education. “We have worked hard to build a positive reputation in the industry and have been fortunate to have our hard work recognised. We are not infallible and neither are we strangers to controversy… We want to categorically state that at no point did we intend to offend anyone,” the brand added.

In conclusion, the clothing giant said, “We do apologise deeply for any offence we have caused, despite this never being our intention. We have subsequently also removed any offending images from our social media. We encourage anyone who feels the campaign does not reflect the spirit and values we have described above to take time out and reach out to us directly to learn more about our work in Africa and about how they can make direct and positive contributions to the lives of the Maasai themselves.”