The protest against climate change at the Louis Vuitton show

Yesterday afternoon, at the Louis Vuitton SS22 fashion show at the Louvre that was to close Paris Fashion Week, a Protestant took to the catwalk with a banner bearing the inscription Overconsumption = Extinction and the logos of three groups Les Amis de la Terre, Youth For Climate France and Extinction Rebellion France. On Twitter was immediately released the video of the woman who, after walking briefly on the catwalk in the middle of the show, was plated by security and taken away, not without adding a bit of drama to the final show of the week.

A spokeswoman for Youth for Climate France said on the Amis de la Terre's website: «LVMH, the world's largest luxury group, sets trends, hammers down public spaces with its advertisements and inspires the population to  overconsume, including those who cannot afford their products». Other spokesmen for the three groups also accused the Macron government of not taking the necessary measures against climate change and over-consumption. The episode actually brought to mind the many speeches heard by brands at the beginning of the pandemic, when concern about climate change had skyrocketed and numerous designers declared that they would start producing fewer collections and fewer items a year - speeches that at the end of the lockdown had little follow-up.

Extinction Rebellion was the same group that last year sent an activist on the Dior catwalk to wave a similar slogan, We Are All Fashion Victims. But other similar events had happened at a Nina Ricci show in 2014, by the Femen group, and especially in the early 2000s, with PETA protests interrupting a Dior show in 2003 and a Victoria's Secret show in 2002.

Of course today the issue of climate change and the downsizing of the fashion industry has become something much more urgent. On Instagram and Twitter many users agreed with the protest and some even pointed out that the music of the show, dark and looming, was strangely suitable for the moment. Activist Kendall Lee, for instance, reposted @hftgroup wrote: «Honestly love it. We focus a lot on fast fashion in terms of sustainability but lux fashion can be just as bad».But others have also been critical of the gesture, pointing out that fashion brands produce in relatively limited quantities and fast fashion is the main culprit of pollution and emissions.