Men with shaved heads, dressed in all-white outfits, walk in a single-file line into a large auditorium with their hands tied behind their backs. They are forced to kneel, then they are bound together in circular formation, facing away from one another.
This haunting scene is not from inside El Salavador’s high-security CECOT prison, which has recently functioned as a holding place for some deported migrants captured in the United States by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents.
It was the opening statement of Willy Chavarria’s Paris Fashion Week show.
On Friday, videos and photos began to circulate of show, in which 35 models walked the runway in the French capital that morning. José Feliciano’s version of “California Dreamin’” played in the background during the show; musicians Danny Lux and Rainao were among those who walked the runway. Mexican singer-songwriter Vivir Quintana also performed.
The reception to the fashion show-turned-performance art was largely positive online — with most people applauding the move as a bold political statement. Others, however, lambasted it as distasteful.
“I’m crying ugly tears,” one TikTok user commented on a video of the presentation. “It really does show that fashion is revolutionary and can be a powerful tool to bring injustice to light.”
Another user wrote, “You can say EVERYTHING without saying anything.”
“Fashion IS political, and I’m here for it,” someone wrote in the comment section of another video of the show.
In praise of Chavarria’s art, one commentator said, “SPEAK ON IT! Our people need help and this is exactly how we bring awareness.”
Others on Instagram chimed in to criticize the demonstration for using the imagery.
“This is so weird. Why monetize on it, it’s like the bad is bad and you’re making a show about it,” someone commented on an Instagram video of the show. “I wonder how the prisoners would feel about this?”
For his part, Chavarria saw an opportunity to address the “dehumanization of how immigrants are being treated in the United States,” according to a press release.
The runway opening was presented in partnership with the American Civil Liberties Union and was intended to directly reference the Salvadoran prisons detaining U.S. immigrants.
The white tees worn by the models revealed a message from the civil rights organization that read: “The ACLU dares to create a more perfect union — beyond one person, party or side.”
“I’m not interested in luxury as a symbol of privilege. I’m interested in luxury as a symbol of truth in one’s own character,” Chavarria said of the project, in a press statement he issued Friday. “Exquisite tailoring and craftsmanship worn to elevate one’s personal intent — that’s power. That’s fashion.”
The Times has reached out to Chavarria for further comment.
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