fbpx

ADL lauds ‘redemption’ of disgraced designer Galliano

The Anti-Defamation League said disgraced designer John Galliano has changed his beliefs and now understands the evils of anti-Semitism.
[additional-authors]
January 18, 2013

The Anti-Defamation League said disgraced designer John Galliano has changed his beliefs and now understands the evils of anti-Semitism.

Galliano, who lost his job as the top designer at Christian Dior after he was arrested for making anti-Semitic statements at a Paris bar, had dedicated “significant” time to understanding anti-Semitism, the ADL's National Director Abraham Foxman said in a statement Friday.

“Mr. Galliano has worked arduously in changing his worldview and dedicated a significant amount of time to researching, reading, and learning about the evils of anti-Semitism and bigotry,” Foxman said.

Galliano blamed his behavior, which included professing his love for Adolf Hitler, on addictions to drugs and alcohol. A French court later ruled he had made “public insults based on origin, religious affiliation, race or ethnicity” in several incidents.

The ADL welcomed Galliano’s “recovery and redemption,” adding: “Along his journey to recovery he met with us on numerous occasions. He has accepted full responsibility for his previous remarks and understands that hurtful comments have no place in our society.”

The statement also welcomed an invitation by the designer Oscar de la Renta for Galliano to spend time in de la Renta’s studio.

“We wish him much success and look forward to working with him again in the near future as a spokesman against anti-Semitism, intolerance and bigotry,” the ADL said.

Did you enjoy this article?
You'll love our roundtable.

Editor's Picks

Latest Articles

Three Dates to Dataland

I took three different dates, ages 6, 72 and 35, to see Dataland, the unusual digital art experience in downtown Los Angeles.

Hakol Shalom, All Is Shalom

This is the transcript of the speech Rabbi Dr. Bradley Shavit Artson gave at the 2026 AJU Gala on May 19, 2026.

A Slice of Aussie Heaven for the Jewish Day of Love

A classic Australian dessert chocolate coconut slice features a rich, dense, fudgy chocolate base packed with dried coconut, finished with a thick cocoa frosting and generously dusted with even more coconut.

The Empty Plaza and the Eternal Bond

This Tisha b’Av, as we mourn over the Temple once more, it is an occasion to consider what resonance the remnants of the Temple structure hold for us today.

Rosner’s Domain | A Leftist (Not) by Choice?

Coalition supporters want to define Eisenkot as a leftist because leftist is a title most Israelis do not want their Prime Minister to hold. But this definition has inherent limitations.

Life, Love and Tisha b’Av

As if life needed one more complication, my anniversary with life, my birthday, usually falls somewhere inside the Three Weeks, that narrow corridor of Jewish time when celebration starts to feel suspicious.

Echoes of Oct. 7 in ‘The Odyssey’

The film reminded me that an ancient poet could write about massacres but also about moral courage, while terrorists who dream of killing Jews can only think of going right to the massacre.

More news and opinions than at a Shabbat dinner, right in your inbox.