XPost: alt.fashion, soc.men, talk.politics.guns   
   XPost: talk.politics.misc, alt.politics.homosexuality, sac.politics   
   From: remailer@domain.invalid   
      
   A male model sued Abercrombie & Fitch, saying the company allowed   
   its former CEO to exploit models.   
      
   The lawsuit comes after the BBC published a report with claims the   
   CEO ran a sex trafficking ring.   
      
   CEO Mike Jefferies 'sexually abused his many victims' the lawsuit   
   said.   
      
   A former model for Abercrombie & Fitch on Friday sued the fashion   
   retailer, alleging it allowed its former CEO Mike Jeffries to run a   
   sex-trafficking organization during his 22-year tenure.   
      
   Jeffries, who left Abercrombie in 2014, converted the chain from a   
   struggling retailer of hunting apparel to a seller of must-have teen   
   clothing. But he faced criticism for the company's sexualized   
   marketing, including billboards and beefy models that alienated   
   potential customers who didn't fit into its image.   
      
   The lawsuit comes after a BBC report earlier this month raised   
   similar allegations against Jeffries and his partner Matthew Smith.   
      
   The lawsuit, filed by David Bradberry in the US District Court for   
   the Southern District of New York, says Jeffries had modeling scouts   
   scouring the internet and elsewhere to identify attractive young men   
   seeking to be the next face of Abercrombie. Often, these prospective   
   models became sex-trafficking victims, sent to New York and abroad   
   and abused by Jeffries and other men, all under the guise that they   
   were being recruited to become the next Abercrombie model, the   
   lawsuit contends.   
      
   "Jeffries was so important to the profitability of the brand that he   
   was given complete autonomy to perform his role as CEO however he   
   saw fit, including through the use of blatant international sex   
   trafficking and abuse of prospective Abercrombie models," the suit   
   said.   
      
   Per the suit, these practices occurred between at least 1992 to   
   2014. Jeffries, Smith, and the Jeffries Family Office LLC are named   
   in the suit. It seeks class-action status and estimates that over a   
   hundred young models, in addition to Bradberry, were victims.   
      
   "Among other things, Jeffries sexually abused his many victims and   
   caused his victims to engage in commercial sex acts, specifically   
   sex acts for which his victims received things of value, including   
   money, promises of career advancement, and promises that Jeffries   
   would hire them to work as Abercrombie models," according to the   
   suit.   
      
   A&F, based in New Albany, Ohio, declined to comment Friday. Earlier   
   this month, the retailer said that it had hired an outside law firm   
   to conduct an independent investigation into the issues raised by   
   the BBC. It said the company's current leaders and board of   
   directors were not aware of the allegations of Jeffries' sexual   
   misconduct.   
      
   "For close to a decade, a new executive leadership team and   
   refreshed board of directors have successfully transformed our   
   brands and culture into the values-driven organization we are   
   today," the company said. "We have zero tolerance for abuse,   
   harassment or discrimination of any kind."   
      
   Jeffries' attorney, Brian Bieber, said in a statement that Jeffries   
   "will not comment in the press on this new lawsuit, as he has   
   likewise chosen not to regarding litigation in the past. "   
      
   "The courtroom is where we will deal with this matter," Bieber   
   added.   
      
   Once a household name for affluent teens and now benefiting from a   
   resurgence in popularity, the company long faced controversy under   
   the direction of Jeffries.   
      
   In the 2000s, the company faced multiple accusations of racism and   
   discrimination against employees of color. The focus on these   
   controversies heightened during the pandemic thanks to the   
   documentary "White Hot."   
      
   Earlier in October, the BBC published a two-year investigation into   
   Jeffries and Smith that alleged the pair were involved in organizing   
   events that recruited young men for sex acts. Men said they were   
   exploited or abused, and others noted that modeling opportunities   
   were tied to participation in sex acts.   
      
   In some cases, Jeffries and Smith were present during the sex acts.   
      
   The company told the BBC that they were "appalled and disgusted" by   
   the claims made about Jeffries.   
      
   https://www.yahoo.com/news/male-model-worked-abercrombie-fitch-   
   070038132.html   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)