A man who recently went viral for staging a fashion show in prison is now being punished for it, his mother has revealed in a new Instagram post. 

First dropped in March 2020, the video sees the designer and other inmates model a series of looks in front of a sheet painted with The Trenches’ logo while Post Malone’s “White Iverson” plays. It’s not quite Paris Fashion Week (duh), but it certainly demonstrates creativity when it comes to using what you have. More recently, Stanley’s mother – who maintains his accounts while he’s locked up – shared more clips from the same show on the brand’s newly instated TikTok, which were then shared widely across social media. Now, Stanley is facing nine months in solitary confinement, despite having already served 30 days by way of punishment for the show back in March. 

“My son was moved from Calhoun State Prison and is currently being held in solitary confinement on Tier 2 at Macon State Prison for ‘the prison fashion show video’ that went viral I posted on 12/3/20. The same clothing was posted in another video 3/19/20 which he had already been disciplined for,” she wrote in an Instagram post. According to Stanley’s mother, he is being charged with attempt to aid in escape by making clothes for others and altering state property. “It is assumed inmates could’ve walked away unnoticed in these outfits” she adds, we’re guessing with a touch of sarcasm. 

According to the post, the solitary confinement program Stanley has been placed in is for offenders who ‘commit violent, disruptive, predatory, or riotous actions or who otherwise pose a serious threat to the safety and security of institutional operations’. “Not only does he not meet the criteria, this is excessive punishment and in violation of his constitutional rights. It’s also double jeopardy since he’s previously been disciplined for it,” she continues. “The Georgia Department of Corrections was created for rehabilitation, so why is he being punished to the highest severity?”

Having opened his own clothing store in Atlanta, Georgia aged 19, Rashod Stanley ‘fell in with the wrong crowd’. Jailed for multiple counts of unarmed robbery, Stanley began creating clothes under his label The Trenches while inside, using prison uniforms, towels, bedsheets, and other scraps of material sewn together using dental floss and paper clips in place of needles. Posts from the prison runway show logo tees, branded shirts, and sweats and track tops finished with some pretty impressive gathered cuffs. According to the label’s website, Stanley started making clothes in prison not just as an outlet for his creativity, but also in the hopes of inspiring others.

“I want people to know my story because location doesn’t determine destination,” his bio reads. “I want to inspire others to make something out of nothing and reach their full potential without making excuses. I want to be a mentor and public speaker to at-risk kids that’s following down the wrong path.” Currently selling a selection of hoodies, tees, accessories, and homewares, Stanley also reveals in his bio that he wants to “start a nonprofit organisation for low-income communities in Atlanta and eventually expand nationwide”.

Stanley’s mother signed off her post by linking to a GoFundMe where donations towards legal representation can be made, a petition calling for justice in Stanley’s case, and his prison address, as she called on supporters to send him letters to keep his spirits up while he’s in solitary. It can be found below.