Balenciaga wipes Instagram feed in support of Iranian women's rights

Once again the house uses its platform to highlight social issues

Demonstrators chant slogans during the March of Solidarity for Iran in Washington. AFP

Another group of demonstrators at the march. AFP

A protest in support of Iranian women in Barcelona. Reuters

Iranian citizens and locals joined in the Barcelona protest. Reuters

People attend a demonstration in solidarity with Mahsa Amini and other Iranian women in Castello Square, Turin. EPA

A person places a candle during the demonstration in Turin. EPA

A protester holds a pre-Islamic Revolution Iranian flag during a demonstration in Brussels in support of the Iranians fighting for their freedom. AFP

A protester wearing a top with a logo that reads 'No to an Islamic state" as she takes part in a rally in support of the Iranian people, in Brussels. AFP

People wave the Shah-era Iranian flag during a protest in Paris. AFP

A woman shows her true colours in the protest against the Iranian government, in Paris. AFP

A woman holds a flag, as people protest against the Iranian regime outside Iran's embassy in central London. Reuters

Supporters of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) carry placards and wave party flags in Beirut, during a protest against the death of Ms Amini. EPA

People demonstrate against the Iranian government outside the Houses of Parliament in London following the death of Amini. Reuters

A mural in Paris depicts women cutting their hair to show support for Iranian protesters. AP

People take part in a rally against the Iranian government in Vancouver, Canada, on Saturday. AP

Protesters take to the streets of Tehran. EPA

Iranian protesters run after clashing with with police. EPA

A protester shaves their head outside the Houses of Parliament in London. Reuters

Iranians living in Athens hold a protest in solidarity. AFP

People take part in a rally in The Hague. AFP

A woman cuts her hair during a demonstration in Santiago, Chile, by feminist groups and Iranian migrants in support of Iranian women following the death of Amini. AFP

Members of feminist groups and Iranian migrants during the protests in Santiago. AFP

Iranian activists shout slogans during a protest against the government in Tehran, in Amsterdam, The Netherlands. EPA

A protester holds a painted portrait of Mahsa Amini in Berlin, Germany. EPA

A protester shows red paint on her face, resembling blood splatters and bloody handprints next to the national Iranian emblem, during a rally in Berlin. EPA

Iranian protesters shout slogan during a protest in Istanbul, Turkey. EPA

A woman holds a sign during a protest against the Iranian government, in front of the country's embassy in Madrid, Spain. The protests were triggered by the death of a young Iranian woman, Mahsa Amini, in police custody. Reuters

A woman cuts her hair during the protest in front of the Iranian embassy in Madrid. Reuters

Israelis show their support for women in Iran as they hold up placards of Amini during a protest in Jerusalem. EPA

Amini, 22, was arrested in Tehran on September 13, 2022, by the morality police. She fell into a coma while in police custody and was declared dead on September 16. EPA

People walk by graffiti in support of the protests triggered by Amini's death, in Jerusalem. EPA

A protest in Nantes, western France, after the death of Amini in Iranian police custody. AFP

Women gather for a demonstration in Barcelona, Spain. AFP

Demonstrators in Nantes. Amini's death has sparked a global protest movement. AFP

Women protest outside the town hall in in Montpellier, southern France. AFP

A woman at a protest in Catalunya Square, Barcelona. Reuters

Campaigners and football fans protest at a Champions League match between Porto and Bayer Leverkusen at the Dragao stadium in Portugal. EPA

People hold placards during a demonstration in solidarity with the Iranian people near the European Parliament in Strasbourg, France. EPA

An Iranian woman living in Turkey with 'Freedom' written on her forehead takes part in a protest near the Iranian consulate in Istanbul. Reuters

In Barcelona, protesters take part in a demonstration in support of Iranian women. AFP

A Lebanese activist takes part in a protest in Beirut, triggered by the death of Amini, 22. AP

A Turkish protester takes off her head scarf while giving a performance in Instanbul during a protest against Iran over Amini's death. Getty

A woman in Istanbul cuts her hair during a protest against Iran. Getty

A Lebanese activist holds a poster depicting Amini during a protest in Beirut organised by feminist groups in support of women protesters in Iran. EPA

Demonstrators in Los Angeles, California, hold the Iranian flag during a protest against the government in Tehran. AFP

Demonstrators hold placards in Mexico City during a protest against Iran. Reuters

People demonstrate in Montreal, Canada, during a protest triggered by Amini's death. AFP

Iranian Americans participate in a rally in central Los Angeles, in solidarity with women in Iran. AP

Demonstrators march during a protest in Los Angeles, California. AFP

A woman with the colours of the Iranian flag painted on her face participates in a rally as thousands demonstrate in support of Iranian women in Los Angeles. EPA

Australians protest over Amini's death in Melbourne. EPA

Police block protesters from entering Iran's embassy in Oslo, Norway. EPA

Demonstrators in front of the European headquarters of the UN in Geneva, Switzerland, during a rally against Iran. EPA

A candlelight vigil for Amini in Los Angeles. AFP

Afghan women hold placards as they take part in a protest in front of the Iranian embassy in Kabul. AFP

Protestors take part in a rally outside the Iranian consulate in Istanbul. AFP

An Iranian woman shows a lock of hair she cut off during a protest outside the Iranian consulate in Istanbul. EPA

Demonstrators outside the Iranian consulate in Istanbul. Getty

Iranian Americans rally on Capitol Hill in Washington to show support for protesters in Iran. AFP

Protesters on Capitol Hill hold a sign condemning the crackdown by Tehran. AFP

German demonstrators gather in Berlin after the death of Amini in Iranian police custody. AP

A protester cries during a rally in Berlin. Reuters

A demonstration in Madrid, Spain. Thousands have gathered in cities across Europe to support protests in Iran. AP

Demonstrators gather outside the Iranian embassy in Madrid. Reuters

People take part in a protest in Lausanne, Switzerland. EPA

Protesters hold signs featuring images of Amini during the protest in the western Swiss city. EPA

Demonstrators in front of the Iranian embassy in Buenos Aires, Argentina. EPA

An activist outside the Iranian embassy in Buenos Aires, Argentina, with a sign that reads 'Justice for Mahsa Amini'. AFP

A demonstration against violence in Iran is held in Quito, Ecuador. The Iranian community in Ecuador protested outside the Iranian embassy. EPA

Protesters at a demonstration outside the Iranian embassy in Quito, Ecuador. EPA

Spanish maison Balenciaga has once again wiped its Instagram account, this time in support of women's rights in Iran.

On Wednesday, the official account, which has more than 14 million followers, featured only one post, which reads "Women Life Freedom" in English and Farsi.

The accompanying caption, on behalf of the brand and its parent company, reads: "Balenciaga, Kering and the Kering Foundation have always supported the fight for women's fundamental rights and freedom. We stand with all Iranian women, in memory of Mahsa."

Mahsa Amini is the Kurdish-Iranian woman whose death at the hands of the Iranian morality police sparked the recent unrest across the country. Iranian women have been removing their head coverings and cutting off their hair in protest to her death.

Scroll through the gallery above to see photos of protests around the world in support of Mahsa Amini

The move comes only days after the brand's Paris Fashion Week show, which had models with fake bruises and injuries on their faces, walking through a mud-filled runway.

This is not the first time that Balenciaga, headed by the designer Demna, has offered support to social and political causes. In March, following the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February — the country where the designer spent part of his childhood — the Balenciaga Instagram account was wiped clean, except for an image of the Ukrainian flag. Its Stories and Reels have previously featured statements in support of numerous causes, including the fight against racism, for gender equality and in support of the human rights of refugees.

Kering also owns Gucci, which has weighed in on the situation as well, writing on its Instagram Stories: "As a House, and through our Chime for Change campaign to unite and strengthen voices in the fight for gender equality, we stand with all Iranian women."

Balenciaga is among a handful of high-profile brands that understand the impact of Instagram and how deleting images and posts or the entire account draws huge attention.

In May 2021, to formally mark the retirement of Jean Paul Gaultier from his eponymous brand, its social media pages were deleted, and instead replaced with two words: "The End".

The following month, Italian house Bottega Veneta wiped clean all of its posts on social media accounts, sending the already buzzing atmosphere around the company into hyper-drive. Then under the leadership of Daniel Lee, who has just been named as the new creative director at Burberry, the surprise move of deleting all of the brand's social media posts as his designs were sparking widespread adoration, generated even more interest.

Ye, the artist formally known as Kanye West, has deleted posts across his accounts on numerous occasions. In October 2018, he deleted his accounts citing his "unhealthy" posts, and again in March 2022 after publicly insulting his ex-wife Kim Kardashian. No sooner had he started posting again than he was given a 24-hour ban by Meta, Instagram's parent company, for what it described as messages that "violated Instagram’s policies on hate speech, bullying and harassment". This was regarding Ye's comments about Pete Davidson, who was then dating Kardashian, as well as comedian Trevor Noah.

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