Fashion boss put on leave for restraining animal rights protesters at New York fashion week

A FASHION BOSS has been put on leave after assaulting two animal protesters at New York’s fashion week. 

On Sunday, Stephen Kolb, head of the Council for Fashion Designers of America (CFDA) aggressively restrained two activists that were protesting on the runway for clothes company COS.

A statement by animals rights organisation People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) said that Kolb “violently grabbed” one protester, “held her to the floor, wrapped a leg around her, and covered her mouth and nose with his hands as she shouted, ‘Sheep bloodied and beaten for wool.’”

Kolb also shoved and grabbed a second PETA member who was filming the catwalk takeover and covered his face with his hand, the statement said.

The PETA activists were protesting the use of wool by COS’s parent company H&M group.

Kolb posted an apology on social media, saying: “I reacted inappropriately to an incident at a show earlier today. It wasn’t my place to do so. I should have let the security team handle the situation”. 

Stephen Kolb (right) attends AAFA American Image Awards ceremony at Gotham Hall with Stephen Lamar last year. Alamy Stock Photo

ABC news reported today that Kolb has been put on leave “pending a full review”.

In a statement to the outlet, the CFDA said that it “takes this matter very seriously”. 

“The CFDA as an organization is committed to working with dissenting voices to find commonality and is engaged in efforts to move the American fashion industry forward while upholding the values of our membership, including respectful engagement with differing viewpoints,” the statement said.