Following the mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Florida last week, in which 17 people were killed, Gucci is donating $500,000 to a gun control march planned for Washington next month.
The news follows a string of donations from celebrities including George and Amal Clooney plus Oprah Winfrey, but Gucci is the first luxury brand to donate to the cause. The house has first-hand experience with the tragic impact of mass shootings. When a gunman killed 49 people at an Orlando, Florida nightclub in June 2016, a Gucci employee was among the dead; another was critically injured.
The Italian fashion house is donating $500,000 to March For Our Lives, the organisation planning next month's demonstration, whilst a team representing the company will also join the march.
“We stand with March For Our Lives and the fearless students across the country who demand that their lives and safety become a priority,” said the company in a statement. "We have all been directly or indirectly impacted by these senseless tragedies, and Gucci is proud to join this movement with a donation of US$500,000."
“I am truly moved by the courage of these students,” added Gucci creative director Alessandro Michele in a statement. “My love is with them and it will be next to them on March 24. I am standing with March for Our Lives and the strong young women and men across the United States who are fighting for their generation and those to come.”
Gucci has a strong history in supporting political causes. In 2013, it launched Chime for Change, a global campaign to raise funds and awareness for women's rights. The brand was honoured in 2017 by Equality Now for its contributions to women's causes.
Its most recent advertising campaign harks back to France in 1968 when student marches were rife.
Shot by Glen Luchford it depicts Gucci clad students marching and rallying for change.
