Coclico Under Fire for ‘Kentucky Negro’ Boots
What's in a name? Coclico is about to find out.
The U.S. footwear label has some explaining to do after shopper Melissa Pierce discovered that the color for its Miller knee-high boots was labeled as "Kentucky Negro," Styleite reports.
The politically incorrect term is being used to describe a black leather style on e-retailers like Shopbop (which simply says "Negro") and Amazon, which also has a "Dixan Black" shoe on offer.
The Coclico site, however, refers to the shade solely as "Kentucky Black."
The shoes are made in Spain, where "negro" means black, and designer Sandra Canselier hails from France.
Still, the company's American roots and the sensitive nature of that racial term suggests that someone needs a lesson in semantics.
In related news, a racially insensitive Urban Outfitters' underwear description may also be illegal.
