Mexico to Adidas: You Ripped Off Our Sandals

Mexican authorities are accusing sportswear company Adidas of plagiarizing artisans in southern Mexico, alleging that a new sandal design is strikingly similar to the traditional Indigenous footwear known as huaraches, per the AP. Adidas responded in a letter on Friday, 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.

• Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said Adidas was already in talks with authorities in the southern Mexican state of Oaxaca to provide "compensation for the people who were plagiarized," and that her government was preparing legal reforms to prevent the copying of Mexican handicrafts.
• The design at the center of the controversy is the "Oaxaca Slip-On," a sandal created by US designer Willy Chavarría for Adidas Originals. The sandals feature thin leather straps braided in a style that is unmistakably similar to the traditional Mexican huaraches. Instead of flat leather soles, the Adidas shoes tout a more chunky, sports shoe sole.
• According to Mexican authorities, Adidas' design contains elements that are part of the cultural heritage of the Zapotec Indigenous communities in Oaxaca, particularly in the town of Villa Hidalgo de Yalálag.
• Handicrafts are a crucial economic lifeline in Mexico, providing jobs for around half a million people across the country. The industry accounts for around 10% of the gross domestic product of states like Oaxaca, Jalisco, Michoacan, and Guerrero.