Twitter Is Not Amused By This Brand's 'Refugee Dress' - Glamour

Today, in awful retail copywriting: A Brooklyn-based brand has come under fire for marketing a product titled the "Refugee Dress," a loose-fit silhouette that retails for $119. And, no, none of the proceeds were going to refugees.

UZI NYC first caught the attention of the Twitterverse this week for its sleeveless, mostly nondescript, wrinkled-cotton dress, Mic reported. However, the style was actually introduced years ago, according to Mari Gustafson, the brand's co-founder. "We named the dress in 2007, when we could not see ourselves escaping the reality of a global economy spinning out of control," she told Mic. "We feel that it is important to keep these issues within public discourse... We could have named the dress anything we wanted but then we wouldn’t be having this discussion."

Gustafson clarified that the product copy wasn't meant to offend: "The language we have used to describe our fabric is common within the fabric industry, it in no way references human beings." However, in light of the negative response UZI NYC has received because of it, the brand renamed the style the "Black Oxford Dress"—though, the URL for the product still reflects its original, controversial nomenclature. "We understand that we have unintentionally offended some people with whom we share the same concerns, but in that process we have also been able to amplify our shared message," Gustafson continued in her statement to Mic.

But people are failing to see what "discussion" the dress started—other than the one about why naming and designing a dress after a marginalized group of people is inappropriate. As Twitter users pointed out, trying to make someone's dire situation into a fashion statement (or as a marketing ploy) trivializes it.