News An Environmental Activist Crashed the Dior Runway Show Some people thought she was part of the show. By Alyssa Hardy Alyssa Hardy Instagram Twitter Alyssa Hardy is a fashion and culture writer living in New York City. She was formerly the Fashion News Editor at Teen Vogue and the Senior News Editor at InStyle. She recently launched a newsletter titled "This Stuff," which publishes twice weekly. In each edition, readers find timely commentary on news stories and current events in fashion, along with personal essays and musings on trends and celebrity style, featuring personal anecdotes from Alyssa's life as a fashion insider.Alyssa is a staunch advocate for garment workers' rights, and has a deep passion for educating others about fashion's environmental impact — tones that can be felt throughout 'This Stuff.' Her work has been featured in InStyle, Vogue, NYLON, Refinery29, TeenVogue, Ladygunn, Fashionista, and Allure. She is currently working on her debut book, a non-fiction exploration of ethics in fashion titled 'Worn Out.' InStyle's editorial guidelines Published on September 29, 2020 @ 02:44PM Pin Share Tweet Email The Dior show had an unexpected guest this Paris Fashion Week: a runway protestor. Though recent shows from the brand have featured purposeful protest-like messaging from Creative Director Maria Grazia Chiuri, this particular message was not approved. During the Tuesday show, a woman carrying a banner that read, ″We Are All Fashion Victims" with the extinction symbol – used by environmental activists – painted in the corner, made her way down the catwalk. According to a report on WWD, the activist group Extinction Rebellion claimed responsibility for the protest and was also seen outside the show holding similar banners. Interestingly, the move caused a bit of confusion among guests because apparently, the protestor fit right into the lineup. ″It was a surprise for everybody,″ Pietro Beccari, chairman and CEO of Christian Dior Couture told the outlet. ″It was so well done, you couldn’t tell what it was.″ Sidney Toledano, chairman, and CEO of LVMH Fashion Group added, ″I had no idea what was going on. I saw the girl go past, and it looked like she was walking in the show. I don’t think we’re destroying the planet. We’re committed to reducing our environmental impact by cutting our carbon dioxide emissions, tracing our raw materials, and so forth. They shouldn’t be targeting us. I think there are industries that pollute much more.″ (While there are of course other industries that cause pollution, fashion is not innocent and it has overproduction, waste, and labor problems.) Toledano went on to add that he didn't think the message was ″clear.″ ″It wasn’t nasty or aggressive,″ he said. ″You couldn’t tell if it was part of the show or not." Fashion Week Finally Feels Like It's About the Fashion Protesters and crashers are not new to fashion week. From the famous PETA protestors throughout the 90s and early 2000s to Gigi Hadid famously throwing out a Chanel crasher in 2019, it seems like it's a tradition that's here to stay.