SHEIN Accused of Exploiting Assata Shakur’s Legacy for Profit

Fashion Giant Faces Backlash Over Alleged Unauthorized Use of Activist’s Image

An unexpected clash has emerged between a major fashion retailer and a non-profit activist group over the alleged appropriation of imagery honoring a civil rights icon. The recent controversy highlights ongoing tensions between commercial interests and social justice causes.

A collage featuring Assata Shakur, with images, text, and symbols related to the Black Panther Party and revolutionary activism. — Source: Fe Worthington / Dream Defenders

The Dream Defenders, a political organization advocating for systemic change, recently accused SHEIN, a widely known apparel company, of using a graphic design intended to celebrate the life of Assata Shakur without permission. Shakur, who passed away last September, was a prominent figure in the fight for Black liberation.

Fe Worthington, the designer behind the image, expressed frustration over the use of their work. “I made this graphic with love to honor the life and legacy of Assata Shakur—who, even upon the day of her death, was disparaged on social media by prominent celebrities and politicians as nothing more than a criminal,” Worthington stated in a message shared with NewsOne. The Dream Defenders emphasized that the graphic was never intended for commercial purposes.

Shakur’s legacy has been subject to controversy, particularly after her passing. Criticism from mainstream media and government officials, including FBI Director Kash Patel, highlighted her fugitive status and past convictions. However, there are ongoing debates regarding the fairness of her trial and the historical context of her actions.

So, Patel didn’t include anything about the all-white jury that convicted her, or that she was convicted without physical evidence, or that a surgeon who examined her said it was “anatomically impossible” that she shot Foerster in the way that was reported, and that it was “anatomically necessary” for her arms to have been raised for her to receive the bullet wounds she did in the shootout. Patel also didn’t bother mentioning the extensive history of law enforcement’s efforts to sabotage the civil rights and Black liberation movements, including the FBI’s COINTELPRO operations, and the outright malicious killing of Black Panther Party Chairman Fred Hampton.

The Dream Defenders have taken action by sending SHEIN a cease-and-desist notice, demanding the removal of the design from their platforms. However, the only response received was a link directing the artist to file a formal complaint.

SHEIN is, unfortunately, one of the largest clothing retailers in the world and a multibillion-dollar corporation that relies on slave labor to create cheap clothing that harms the environment and exploits poor and working-class people. Their profits are maximized by the same type of individuals who were bold enough to celebrate the death of a freedom fighter.

The irony is also that SHEIN stole this design from a Black, anti-capitalist non-profit that stands against everything they are. Black legacy and lived experiences have only ever been “respected” when it’s to turn a profit, for the white gaze and mass consumption.

For Worthington, it’s especially disheartening as Black and marginalized creators compete with artificial intelligence and the theft of their own creative and intellectual properties.

“In a world where the work Black and brown artists create are stolen by AI and mega-corporations to fuel a system that keeps the same Black and brown people oppressed,” she adds, “it is so important to continue to create from the heart—channeling emotions, experience and heritage—the way only humankind can.”

SHEIN has had this promotion going for more than 24 hours. Dream Defenders, which is prepared to take legal action, has requested that the company cease and desist—remove the design from its social networks and the t-shirt item from its online store.