NEW YORK CITY: Charly 'Char' Defrancesco, husband of renowned fashion designer Marc Jacobs, found himself at the center of a social media storm after engaging in a fiery exchange with a non-binary vegan influencer, Nati Casanova.
The confrontation erupted following criticism directed at Marc Jacobs for the alleged use of real fur in the designer's collections.
Marc Jacobs' husband Char Defrancesco slams Nati Casanova's lifestyle
In September, Nati Casanova directly addressed Marc Jacobs on social media, questioning the impact of animal cruelty in the fashion industry.
The video was captioned, "@marcjacobs whaddya say? How many animals did you KILL today?"
This prompted a lengthy, impassioned response from Char Defrancesco, spanning 368 words, blasting Casanova for consuming coffee and confectionary, allegedly produced by companies that use child labor in Africa.
Defrancesco, a 42-year-old candlemaker residing in New York, not only defended the use of fur by the Marc Jacobs brand but also launched a counter-attack against Casanova.
Jacobs' husband wrote, "I see you, mainly 'cause you're constantly harassing me. Looking at your page I've noticed your posts with coffee, sweets, donuts. Which I want to bring attention to."
He continued, "So hopefully next time you think it's cute to post pictures with donuts, which by the looks of it - you've had a lot of, you're not in a position to be pointing any fingers."
Defrancesco accused Casanova of 'harassing' him, warning them, "If you're gonna be on your self righteous high horse of hypocrisy, pointing fingers, I'm here to point some right back at you."
Defrancesco continued to say the animal rights advocate was "not in a position to be pointing any fingers" because they consume coffee, sweets, and doughnuts. He added, "By the looks of it - you've had a lot of [sugar]."
The heated exchange escalated as Defrancesco called out Casanova for allegedly consuming products linked to child labor in Africa, implicating them in an ethical contradiction.
Marc Jacobs' husband Char Defrancesco's rant sparks social media backlash
Defrancesco's vehement response sparked a wave of disapproval among Instagram users, inciting a barrage of critical comments.
"This is super cringey. You are actually comparing the fur industry to coffee beans," expressed one user.
Another comment questioned the approach, stating, "Isn't it easier to announce a fur-free policy instead of writing a looong essay full of grammatical errors to attack one individual?"
Criticism regarding Defrancesco's spelling and argumentative strategy surfaced as well.
"You can't even spell. The Appeal to Hypocrisy is your only argument when Marc Jacobs the brand could just announce a fur-free policy and cut ties with LVMH," remarked a third user.
Expressing a sense of discomfort with the post's tone, another user stated, "It is the desperation for me. It is not too late to take down this post."
Amidst the backlash, one user summarized the sentiment, describing the post as "genuinely one of the most cringy things I have seen on the internet."
One said, "Entitled clown complains about how hard it is to be held accountable for skinning animals alive for money, oil on canvas, colorized, 2023." Another said,
Marc Jacobs' eponymous label has history of scrutiny by animal rights groups
The clash between Defrancesco and Casanova brings to light not only the present-day tensions but also the ongoing ethical debates surrounding Marc Jacobs' brand.
Defrancesco, who married Jacobs in a celebrated ceremony in 2019, found himself embroiled in controversy due to the brand's history.
Marc Jacobs' eponymous label, a subsidiary of LVHM, has faced scrutiny from animal rights groups in the past. Instances of allegedly selling real fur, including mink coats, led to criticism and allegations of misrepresentation.
An alarming discovery reportedly revealed that items labeled as faux fur were found, through laboratory testing, to contain fur from raccoon dogs. This practice directly violates federal laws mandating accurate fur labeling, as reported by Insider.
In 2012, Humane Society investigators uncovered distressing details when purchasing 'Marc by Marc Jacobs' jackets advertised as trimmed with faux fur. Laboratory tests revealed that the trim originated from raccoon dogs, raising ethical questions and concerns about the sourcing of animal fur in fashion.
Pierre Grzybowski, the research and enforcement manager of the fur-free campaign for The Humane Society of the United States, reportedly highlighted these findings during National Consumer Protection Week.
The revelation aimed to caution consumers about the undisclosed sale of animal fur, potentially sourced from raccoon dogs subjected to allegedly inhumane practices in China, and the mislabeling of such products as faux fur.
