Topshop has pulled a “festival ready” playsuit from sale after it was accused of “cultural appropriation" for using a pattern similar to the famous Palestinian keffiyeh design.
The clothing store was hit by a barrage of criticism after posting the black and white “scarf playsuit” on its website.
Many people pointed out that the print of the piece of clothing was very similar to that on the Palestinian keffiyeh headscarf.
The keffiyeh scarf is a traditional Middle Eastern headdress which became a symbol of Palestinian nationalism and revolt.
Furious customers accused the shop of using a “very important cultural symbol”, with “so much meaning and spilled blood” behind it, to sell fashion.
One person posted on Facebook: “This piece of clothing is disgracing a whole culture and it is nauseating to see it on the TopShop website. This is cultural appropriation to an extreme.
“Please remove this item, as it is a sign of resistance and not a fashion statement.”
And another person wrote: “Topshop is ugly as hell for this, it’s Keffiyeh not a damn scarf playsuit."
Following the backlash the item of clothing is no longer available on the Topshop website and a spokeswoman said: “Topshop is in the process of removing this style from sale.”
The black-and-white keffiyeh print became a prominent symbol of Palestinian revolt after it was adopted by politician Yasser Arafat.
They are often worn as a political statement by activists.
In the 1980s and early 2000sm the keffiyeh became a fashion accessory in the West and was also popular among youths in Japan.
