Stella McCartney Now Wears Leather?

[roppal222]

In reply to 'are your boots leather?' , had she been wearing an alternative, she could have said 'No' and then explained where she got that them, that they are comfy and hard wearing.. thus demonstrating that she practices what she preaches and also using the opportunity to show that there are alternatives..

or had she said 'Yes these boots are leather, I think it is wrong that they were made, I received them second-hand and in a world of limited resources I think it would be wrong to discard them .. all my future purchases will be animal free' ... then in the eyes of some she may have got away with it although it still would have been a major cop-out
.

Basically she should have been better prepared and she has done no favours to the animal rights movement, she claims she cares so damn much about, for having this inconsistency pointed out.


But then asking Paul's daughter to engage brain with mouth is too much of a demand of course...

 

[Fashion Puss]

With the whole leather thing, if you publicly crow about how leather is wrong; you don't wear it. With declarations like that in the public eye, its all or nothing. The media will think of nothing but pouncing to tear her to shreds, I suspect it made this journalists day when she admitted they weren't vegitarian.

 

[Anastasia]

I have no problem with someone being vegan in their eating habits but wearing leather or fur (though I think fur is tacky) if that's their personal belief system. I eat meat and dairy products now, but was raised macrobiotic and am always aware that I am eating an animal that gave its life for me, and probably not in a pleasant way, though when I can afford it, I buy organic, free-range, etc.

However, maybe I'm dense, but I'm still not getting something. If Stella is as strict and passionate a vegan as I've heard, the type that believes all animal life is sacred and who would no more eat a hamburger than eat a peopleburger, HOW is wearing "vintage" leather okay? To hear PETA go on about chicken holocausts, isn't it like devoting your life to the vehement protest of the nazis, and then buying that human-skin lampshade in a second hand shop because, hey, it's already made, and the nazis aren't directly profiting, and the person's already dead, and it's just so chic, would be a shame to have it sitting there collecting dust. Sorry for the grotesque image, but it's what's been popping into my head since I read this yesterday.

If she wants to change her mind about wearing leather, that's fine. It's her perogative. But drawing a moral distinction between "vintage" and "new" when you feel that strongly about animal rights seems very bizarre logic. But then I'm someone that doesn't get the "I personally would never have an abortion because I think it's murder anytime it's done for whatever reason, but hey! You go right on ahead!" line of thinking either If you feel it's murder, why is it okay for anyone? If animals should not be killed and used for food or clothing why is it okay just because someone else owned the tragically bred-for-murder remains first? I could see her buying the boots to take them off the market altogether, maybe designing a veggie copy if they're that cool. But wearing them so that they don't "waste" when she believes leather and fur are murder is awful.

 

[Fashion Puss]

That's quite a creppy logic about the human lampshade, but still, your point is spot on!

 

[roppal222]

The point is Anastasia , at the end of the day Paul's daughter's actions can't be justified...I'm sure her big-eyed faithful followers will gloss over it, but it's a major flaw in that talent-free skivvy's personality..one of far too many as far as I'm concerned.

People like her and her step-mum make me laugh - they love to front and come across as radical activists to give their life some substance and meaning....give the impression to the rest of us they have depth and a conscience but really the pair of them are only famous through association and their activist work serves to conceal that. It means nothing to me because it demeans those who genuinely and consistently work hard behind the scenes to deal with the issue of animal cruelty. Hypocritical publicity parasites like these two do with it minimum passion and for maximum publicity. tragic.

Great post Anastasia

 

[Teja]

Does anyone know how she justifies using wool and silk for her collections?

 

[Not Plain Jane]

I am assuming (but I don't know) that wool is okay because the animal is not (necessary) killed for the wool?

I don't know enough about silk, or the creation thereof, to respond.

 

[YoninahAliza]

There are ways of making silk without killing the silkworm that makes it so they are able to live out their full lifecycle (it's known as Ahimsa silk or peace silk). I'm not sure what methods McCartney employes for silk garments though (let's hope it's an ethical one!). As for wool, there are more ethical ways of going about sheering the sheep nowadays too, plus they don't die in order for the wool to be used. So I don't think it's that big of a deal as long as they are being raised in a healthy environment and sheared well.

 

[Les_Sucettes]

This "vintage" argument is such a cop out.
I see absolutely no difference between buying new leather shoes or old leather shoes.
In both cases shoes if the shoes are not bought or used they will be a "waste" of leather. If people really have a problem with leather being used the last thing they will do is wear something that totally contradicts their position. Is does not matter if the shoes were made yesterday or 20 years ago (what is vintage anyway? ), someone somewhere bought them and supported the industry. And by using it you are showing your approval.
But I would not expect anything else from Stella anyway.

 

[bun-bun]

Non-vegans and non-vegetarians expect those who are to be 100% perfect, absolutely no mistakes or inconsistencies ever allowed. I think it's a bit unfair.

 

[Teja]

^ So true.

YoninahAliza, that is how I 'ratonalized' it too. But then I did some googling yesterday and apparently she is not vegan but vegetarian. Still it is a bit silly that she uses wool and silk but doesn't use leather + her cosmetic is animal cruelty-free too. But on the other hand - at least she isn't using leather (which she could because vegetarianism is about not eating meat while veganism is about animal cruelty-free lifestyle in all aspects).

 

[lucy92]

there are pros and cons to each side. i prefer to not buy PVC or other faux leather items. they take hundreds to tens of thousands of years to biodegrade.

in general i would feel awful if i purchased an item wore it once and it spent thousands of years in a landfill after my death...

 

[fashionista-ta]

^ PVC is also IMO one of the more toxic materials available. I don't knowingly buy it in any form whatsoever. It definitely off-gasses, and everyone knows it isn't safe to drink from. Which begs the question why it is so extensively used for water piping. I will not allow it to be used in my home ... my plumber thinks I'm nuts (but is too polite to say so). He always emphasizes that he is proposing using it for outgoing water, like maybe I haven't noticed that it's all the same finite planetary water supply and that water will be used again by other humans if not by me personally.

I think there is a very valid distinction between vintage and new leather. Think of it this way. Where no-kill city animal shelters go in, adoptions go up, and pet shops automatically go out of business because demand is down. Not buying new leather products (which I do by the way in limited quantity--I am an omnivore) drives demand down in the same way.

 

[Not Plain Jane]

there are pros and cons to each side. i prefer to not buy PVC or other faux leather items. they take hundreds to tens of thousands of years to biodegrade.

in general i would feel awful if i purchased an item wore it once and it spent thousands of years in a landfill after my death...

This is a very good point and it's why I choose to try to not buy bottled water, for example.

I also try to buy locally, organically, and ethically - which I think anyone can do, whether they are vegan, vegetarian, flexitarian or other, even a foodie.

 

[Les_Sucettes]

Non-vegans and non-vegetarians expect those who are to be 100% perfect, absolutely no mistakes or inconsistencies ever allowed. I think it's a bit unfair.

People can't have it all. She cannot go about life with a "Holier-than-thou" attitude and then expect people to be understanding of her hypocrisy.

But in this case is actually quite a big thing, her brand is interlinked with her ethics, isn't Stella McCartney message by by wearing leather shoes saying that in fact leather is so amazing, that nothing can replace it? Even her with her strict principles she still feels the need to wear it.

 

[fashionista-ta]

^ I don't know, is that her attitude?

I don't know where the boots came from ... but maybe the message is just that she was shopping vintage, founds some boots she really liked, and buying them was consistent with her values.

She definitely makes shoes, not sure about boots?

 

[Les_Sucettes]

^ I don't know, is that her attitude?

I don't know where the boots came from ... but maybe the message is just that she was shopping vintage, founds some boots she really liked, and buying them was consistent with her values.

She definitely makes shoes, not sure about boots?

Yeah she does make loads of boots. It's not like she's does not have a choice.

So you do not find nothing at all hypocrite someone that presents herself as spokesperson against cruelty to animal in fashion, radical to the point that she does uses leather on her own products in a business that people are still using fur, that even collaborated and presented an expose on leather for the looneys of Peta, to suddenly decide to wear leather boots? I think we just have agree to disagree.

 

[fashionista-ta]

^ I'm saying I don't feel the need to pass judgment on her for wearing leather boots, yes. I have a bigger problem with celebrities collaborating with PETA, but I assume they do so out of a lack of in-depth knowledge about the organization.

 

[Scott]

well i've known stella to be quite contradictory myself.....one moment she does that whole PETA PR routine and then i've seen an interview with her in i-D if i remember correctly several years ago where she basically had said,while talking about being vegan that she wasn't perfect,that she makes mistakes. i would normally agree with such a statement but like les sucettes has said,she does have this habit of presenting herself as this exemplary figure for ethical fashion but then we see stuff like that and we read other contrary statements. it just doesn't connect.

 

[LostInNJ]

Out of curiosity, has she done anything else like this since this article was written?

Considering it is eight years old, it seems a bit silly to me to rehash it, unless of course, she is still playing both sides of the fence.