Balenciaga’s $1200 Jogging Pants Are Being Called “Tremendously Racist” By Twitter

BYHayley Hynes15.8K Views
Link Copied to Clipboard!
Mike Kemp/Getty Images
Balenciaga Store
Twitter is not taking kindly to Balenciaga’s latest sweatpants, which many say are “gentrifying sagging.”

The latest fashion house to send the internet into an outrage is none other than Balenciaga. Late last week the Spanish company released some new pieces from its latest season for sale, and one item in particular has caught Twitter’s attention - a pair of trompe-l’oeil sweatpants.

If you’re not familiar, trompe-l’oeil is another term for visual illusion in art; its use in fashion was popularized decades ago by designers like Elsa Schiaparelli, and it continues to show up today, although the latest Balenciaga version isn’t tasteful whatsoever.

The fashion company has taken a pair of straight-leg, grey sweatpants and sewn in a pair of men’s boxers to be visible from the outside, imitating sagging - a fashion trend that was knowingly popularized by the Black community, who have received a ton of flack for dressing this way in the past.

As one may expect, Twitter is absolutely outraged by Balenciaga’s design. One person called it “tremendously racist” while several others noted that the brand is gentrifying sagging at the expense of the Black community.

The fashion giant, which dressed Kim Kardashian in her unforgettable wedding gown for her appearance at Kanye West’s last DONDA event, is no stranger to controversy, and has been known to make Twitter users shake their heads more than once.

Would you pay $1,200 for Balenciaga’s trompe-l’oeil pants? Let us know below.


About The Author
Hayley Hynes is the former Weekend Managing Editor of HotNewHipHop, she stepped down after two years in 2024 to pursue other creative opportunities but remains on staff part-time to cover music, gossip, and pop culture news. Currently, she contributes similar content on Blavity and 21Ninety, as well as on her personal blog where she also offers tarot/astrology services. Hayley resides on the western side of Canada, previously spending a year in Vancouver to study Fashion Marketing at Blanche Macdonald Centre and Journalism at Mount Royal University in Calgary before that. She's passionate about helping others heal through storytelling, and shares much more about her life on Instagram @hayleyhynes.
...