Cartman, Kyle, and Kenny may still be asking, "What would Brian Boitano do?," but the rest of the world is focused on the newest ice king: the fur-loving, glitter-sporting, Lady Gaga-worshiping, Johnny Weir, the three-time national figure skating champion who has quickly penetrated the persnickety fashion world's elite inner circle. Not only do we relish Weir's unabashedly flamboyant demeanor, but we applaud his humanitarian efforts, particularly in this time of worldwide turmoil.
Rather than rest on his laurels and bask in the glory of his newfound pop culture icon status, Weir is using his high profile to enact change. Most recently, he teamed up with designer Tadashi Shoji, who hails from Sendai, Japan, to create a limited-edition T-shirt aimed at raising funds for earthquake relief efforts in Japan. Mirroring the Japanese flag's distinctive design, the white T-shirt features a red circle at its center. Uplifting terms that convey solidarity — among them English words like "Love," "Hope," "Believe," "Prayers," "Support," and "Together", as well as their equivalent in Japanese — are printed in white letters, with different font types and sizes used for each mot. The words form a heart shape, again reinforcing the idea of a loving global community.
All proceeds from the sale of this unisex T-shirt, which retails for $25, will benefit the Japanese Red Cross Society, which is hard at work trying to grapple with the damage wrought by the 9.0 magnitude earthquake and subsequent tsunami that struck Japan on March 11th.
So, if the question for you is, "What would Johnny Weir do?," then you already know the answer: go cop a shirt and do your part.
To order, visit JohnnyGWeir.com or call 1-877-TADASHI.
