MEXICO CITY (AP) — The sportswear brand Adidas is being accused by Mexican authorities of copying the designs of artisans from southern Mexico for its new sandal, which bears a strong resemblance to the traditional Indigenous huaraches.
This situation has sparked debates about cultural appropriation, with officials claiming this isn’t the first instance of plagiarism involving Mexican traditional crafts. As a result, there have been calls for Adidas to remove this shoe model from the market.
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum announced on Friday that Adidas is already negotiating with officials from Oaxaca in southern Mexico to offer “compensation to those affected by the plagiarism,” and mentioned that her government is working on new legislation to stop the replication of Mexican crafts.
The disputed design is called the “Oaxaca Slip-On,” which was developed by U.S. designer Willy Chavarría for Adidas Originals. These sandals have thin, braided leather straps that closely mirror the design of traditional Mexican huaraches. However, unlike the typical flat leather soles, the Adidas version features a thicker, sporty sole.
Officials in Mexico assert that Adidas used designs that are part of the cultural heritage of the Zapotec Indigenous community in Oaxaca, especially in the town of Villa Hidalgo de Yalálag. Handicrafts are an essential part of the economy in Mexico, providing employment for nearly half a million people nationwide. This sector contributes to about 10% of the GDP in states such as Oaxaca, Jalisco, Michoacán, and Guerrero.
Viridiana Jarquín García, who makes and sells huaraches in Oaxaca’s capital, criticized the Adidas shoes as a “cheap imitation” of the carefully crafted pieces produced by Mexican artisans.
“The artistry is being lost. We’re losing our tradition,” she said in front of her small booth of leather shoes.
Authorities in Oaxaca have called for the “Oaxaca Slip-On” to be withdrawn and demanded a public apology from Adidas, with officials describing the design as “cultural appropriation” that may violate Mexican law.
In a public letter to Adidas leadership, Oaxaca state Gov. Salomón Jara Cruz criticized the company’s design, saying that “creative inspiration” is not a valid justification for using cultural expressions that “provide identity to communities.”
“Culture isn’t sold, it’s respected,” he added.
Adidas responded in a letter Friday afternoon, saying that the company “deeply values the cultural wealth of Mexico’s Indigenous people and recognizes the relevance” of the criticisms. It requested to sit down with local officials and to discuss how it can “repair the damage” to Indigenous populations.
The controversy follows years of efforts by Mexico’s government and artisans to push back on major global clothing brands who they say copy traditional designs.
In 2021, the federal government asked manufacturers including Zara, Anthropologie and Patowl to provide a public explanation for why they copied clothing designs from Oaxaca’s Indigenous communities to sell in their stores.
Now, Mexican authorities say they’re trying to work out stricter regulations in an effort to protect artists. But Marina Núñez, Mexico’s undersecretary of cultural development, noted that they also want to establish guidelines to not deprive artists of “the opportunity to trade or collaborate with several of these companies that have very broad commercial reach.”
