Met Gala May Shift Date to Sidestep Holocaust Remembrance Day Amid Galliano Controversy

Trustees and board members are considering moving the 2027 Met Gala from May 3 to avoid clashing with Holocaust and Heroism Remembrance Day, following criticism of the event's tribute to designer John Galliano. Galliano was convicted of a hate crime in France in 2011 for antisemitic outbursts, and organizers have been consulting Jewish leaders about the backlash. The gala is intended to celebrate Galliano's body of work.

The proposed date change stems from the May 3 gala falling on Yom HaShoah, Israel's official day of remembrance for the six million Jewish victims of the Holocaust. Organizers have spent the past year in private consultations with rabbis and Jewish community leaders in New York, seeking guidance on how to handle the tribute to Galliano, whose 2011 hate crime conviction in France remains a point of contention.

The gala serves as the primary annual fundraiser for the Costume Institute at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. If the date shift is approved, the event would move to May 10, allowing the tribute to Galliano's career to proceed without overlapping with the solemn observance. Wintour's direct involvement in these discussions highlights the weight of the decision, as she has long been the driving force behind the gala's direction and guest list.