This week, Owen Mooney, a male model and graphic designer, said he was touched by influential designer Alexander Wang at a New York nightclub in 2017.
Mooney made the accusations in two videos he posted on social media. Soon after, other allegations of sexual assault and non-consensual meetings were made against the 37-year-old designer, posted by Instagram accounts that did not identify the accusers.
Today, after days of silence, Wang responded to the demands – and the barrage of criticism he faced online.
“In the past few days, I have been receiving unfounded and grotesquely false accusations,” wrote the stylist in a statement sent to The New York Times. “These allegations have been unfairly amplified by infamous social media accounts for posting defamatory material from undisclosed and / or anonymous sources with no evidence or any fact checks.”
The allegations were compiled and republished on Instagram by two accounts with many followers who established themselves as watchdogs in the fashion industry: Diet Prada, directed by Tony Liu and Lindsey Schuyler, and another account dedicated to exposing the inner workings of the fashion industry . The New York Times has not independently confirmed the allegations. Mr. Mooney did not respond to requests by email and direct message for comments.
In 2019, Azealia Banks – a rapper and songwriter who was Wang’s muse and collaborator – shared a series of anonymous accounts in their Instagram stories of claims of groping by the designer. In 2017, a person named Nick Ward posted a topic on Twitter claiming that Wang grabbed his genitals at a concert in Brooklyn.
In his videos, which were initially posted on TikTok and then widely shared on other platforms, Mooney said that stories told by others led him to make his claims public. His first TikTok video, made as part of a current meme that asks users to share strange celebrity sightings, described the incident.
“I was alone at one point and this guy next to me obviously took advantage of the fact that nobody could move, and just started touching me, like, totally on my leg, in the groin,” said Mr. Mooney (with obscenity). “And then I looked to my left to see who he was and was a very famous fashion designer and I just couldn’t believe he was doing this to me.”
After several commentators responded to the video by naming Mr. Wang, Mooney posted a second video confirming the speculation. “People with that kind of status think their power gives them a pass to do that to people,” he said in a second video, referring to Wang. “It is so wrong. Whenever I see his name mentioned, it just reminds me of what he did. “
In his statement, Mr. Wang said that “seeing these lies about me being perpetuated as truths was infuriating”.
“I was never involved in the atrocious behavior described and I would never behave the way it was alleged,” he continued. “I intend to get to the bottom of this and hold anyone responsible for originating these claims and disseminating them cruelly online.”
On Monday, Mr. Wang’s Instagram account disabled the ability to comment on his latest post. Your brand’s official Instagram account did the same for all posts this week.
This week, fashion advocacy group Model Alliance released a statement supporting Wang’s accusers.
“We at Model Alliance are in solidarity with those who shared accusations of sexual abuse by Alexander Wang,” the group said on Instagram. “Let’s be clear: the lack of transparency and accountability in the fashion industry leaves all models vulnerable to abuse, regardless of their sex or gender identity.”
Known for constantly pushing the limits of what could be considered high fashion throughout his 15-year career, Wang helped introduce sportswear and streetwear to the lexicon of luxury.
For a time, the American was a young upstart leading the design of the venerable French label Balenciaga. Later, his namesake label pioneered the idea of fashion shows as extensive public shows in the early days of social media. Often, these events were followed by one of their famous after-party parties, where intoxicated gamblers could spray paint cars, watch strippers squirm while eating Hooters chicken wings or jump on inflatable castles while rubbing themselves on famous guests.