*French designer Sophie Theallet wants to make one thing clear before the Trumps move into the White House.
After dressing Michelle Obama several times throughout her eight year run as first lady, the New York City-based designer vowed never to dress her successor, Melania Trump.
In an open letter posted to her Twitter account Thursday night, Theallet said that her brand “stands against all discrimination and prejudice.”
“As one who celebrates and strives for diversity, individual freedom, and respect for all lifestyles, I will not participate in dressing or associating in any way with the next first lady,” she wrote. “The rhetoric of racism, sexism and xenophobia unleashed by her husband’s presidential campaign are incompatible with the shared values we live by.”
Theallet, who also designed collections for plus-sized clothing chain Lane Bryant, explained in the letter that her runway shows, campaigns and celebrity dressings are “a celebration of diversity and reflection of the world we live in.”
Michelle Obama has worn multiple Theallet designs over the past eight years. The designer called FLOTUS someone whose “values, actions and grace” resonate with her, and that designing for Mrs. Obama was “a highlight and an honor.”
Read Theallet’s full open letter below:
Open letter | Sophie Theallet | November 17th, 2016 pic.twitter.com/g1hIAyBmdF
— sophie theallet (@sophietheallet) November 17, 2016
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