For a man and that too a celebrity who screwed up big time with his anti-semitic rant to go to a Jewish Synagogue as a ‘Keynote Speaker’ is a big deal. Yes I am talking about designer John Galliano who will be the keynote speaker at a London lecture series called Connect, hosted by local synagogues and aimed at bringing together like-minded Jews.
After his magnificent debut for Maison Margiela, John Galliano is doing all things right with the help of few friends who stood by him when the fashion world dumped him. One such friend is Condé Nast International CEO Jonathan Newhouse, who developed a friendship while Galliano when he was in recovery. He stated in a Conde Nast publication that he “gave him books about the Holocaust and Jewish history and opened some doors to the Jewish community,” including introducing him to Rabbi Barry Marcus from Central Synagogue, “with whom he established a dialogue”.
The Central Synagogue website stated:
Connect – Fashion with John Galliano – 28th May
CONNECT , a new initiative created by the Central , New West End and Western Marble Arch Synagogues as a way of bringing Jews and Jewish learning back into the West End.
Each evening will have a particular theme and our inaugural theme is FASHION.
The Keynote speaker for the evening will be John Galliano in conversation with a panel of other people discussing Fashion and other.
With support from powerful friends and a prime contract with Maison Margiela, Galliano’s comeback may already be secure, so it’s nice to see that he’s not resting on his laurels — and is still working on righting his wrongs.