Adidas sandal uproar highlights fashion’s long history of cultural controversy

This picture shows people sit as others stand, all wearing traditional Indigenous sandals, in Villa Hidalgo Yalalag, Mexico. Photo: Reuters

US fashion designer Willy Chavarria said he wanted to honour Mexican American culture when he created the Adidas Oaxaca Slip-On.

The shoe features a thick black sole from a 1990s Adidas hiking shoe and a woven black top that resembles that of a huarache, the traditional sandal made by Zapotec artisans in Oaxaca, Mexico.