Mexican officials in the southern Oaxaca state have accused sportswear brand Adidas of cultural appropriation over a shoe design reminiscent of a traditional Mexican sandal.
The black leather “Oaxaca Slip-On”, inspired by the classic huaraches, is expected to be released as part of a broader collaboration between Adidas Originals and American designer Willy Chavarria.
Chavarria, who has Mexican heritage, first unveiled his design during an Adidas panel in Puerto Rico on Monday.
He said his collaboration with the German brand is an ode to Chicano culture.
“It makes me very proud to be working with a company that really respects and uplifts culture in the most real way,” Chavarria told Sneaker News.
But in Mexico, the “Oaxaca Slip-On” was met with outrage.
Oaxaca Governor Salomon Jara accused Adidas of “copying traditional huaraches without asking permission or giving credit to their true creators” in the Villa Hidalgo Yalalag community.
Huaraches are not just a design but are linked to “the culture, history, and identity of the indigenous Zapotec people,” he said in a video message posted on X on Wednesday.
Oaxaca has one of the highest Indigenous populations in the country.
The state’s Ministry of Cultures and Arts asked Adidas to suspend the sandals’ sale, publicly acknowledge their origins and begin a process of “dialogue and redress of grievances” with the Yalalag community.
“The culture of indigenous peoples and communities is not a resource that can be exploited without respect or reciprocity,” the ministry said in a statement.
Jara also threatened to take legal action against Adidas and Chavarria.
In recent years, Mexico has repeatedly pushed back against international fashion brands, including Zara and Shein, for designs it deemed too close to traditional patterns.
The country passed a federal law in 2022 to protect Indigenous and Afro-Mexican peoples’ intellectual and cultural property. Unauthorised use of Indigenous cultural expressions is now punished with fines and prison sentences.
Adidas and its designer have not yet responded to the controversy.
The company has come under fire in the past for similar reasons. In 2022, Morocco’s culture ministry had accused Adidas of appropriating Moroccan culture in its new jerseys for Algeria’s football team.
The brand first denied the claim before acknowledging its design was inspired from the Moroccan zellige mosaics pattern.
