There’s nothing chic about homelessness.
Nevertheless, high-end Italian streetwear label Golden Goose is facing backlash for its new Superstar Taped Sneaker, an intentionally filthy, distressed low-top that’s been patched with duct tape to create what critics say is an insensitive glamorization of poverty.
The shabby sneaks are selling at Nordstrom for $530, boasting “crumply, hold-it-all-together tape” and a “grungy rubber cupsole.”
“There are people in the world wearing plastic bags as shoes because they can’t afford any, but these HIDEOUS things are selling for $500 the fashion industry is truly so [f–king] stupid it pisses me off like what the actual hell ??????!” one Twitter user fumed, garnering almost 50,000 likes.
“Nothing truly says you are a worthless wanker than spending [lavishly] on shoes that mock poverty,” writes another critic.
“I don’t get it,” another user declares.
Golden Goose, meanwhile, apparently doesn’t get the outrage.
The brand set off a similar footwear flap in 2016 with its dirtied-up Distressed Superstar kicks.
At the time, company reps claimed the beat-up look was an homage to West Coast skateboarding culture, not an appropriation of poverty.



