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On Wednesday, Furie said via email that Zara had not sought his permission to use Pepe the Frogs likeness.

Zara offended consumers with its accidental Pepe the Frog denim skirt.

In a statement emailed to Mashable, a spokesperson for Zara contested any link to the meme and said the skirt was part of a limited collection created through a collaboration with artist Mario de Santiago, known online as Yimeisgreat. After being appropriated by groups linked to white supremacy, the Pepe the Frog meme was labeled a hate symbol by the Anti-Defamation League a year ago.

We simply dont see how this skirt made it past all the stages from initial design to being sold online without at least one person thinking: wait, isnt that the frog white supremacists keep posting on Twitter.

While the character itself was originally created by illustrator Matt Furie as a benign cartoon, it was widely adopted by alt-right and anti-Semitic groups for communicating on social-media forums, reaching its peak during the American presidential election a year ago as it continued to pop up in racial contexts.

Zara has not commented on the skirt snafu, but the skirt is no longer available online.

Created in 2005 by Matt Furie, Pepe the frog was later claimed by hate-based groups. They dont look much like the alt-right icon in the first place, aside from general frogginess, and the artist has explicitly stated that there is absolutely no link to the suggested theme.

And although Zara has come under fire for offensive and controversial clothing such as the shirt alluding to the Holocaust we may have to give the retailer the benefit of the doubt on this one.

In September 2007, Zara removed a handbag with embroidered swastikas that was manufactured in India and inspired by commonly used Hindu symbols, which include the swastika.

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Zara's Pepe the Frog Skirt Pulled After Internet Backlash PPP Focus - pppFocus