The removal of the items followed pressure from Twitter users who urged people to complain to the retail giant
Wed 19 Aug 2020 12.36 EDT
Amazon has removed a clothing line emblazoned with an offensive slogan referring to Kamala Harris from its website after complaints from Twitter users who branded it “unacceptable”.
The T-shirts, tank tops and hoodies which had the words “Joe and the hoe” written in red, white and blue in the style of Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden and his running mate Harris’s campaign logo, were on sale for between $24.99 and $42.99.
The derogatory phrase was also recently adopted by the conservative radio host and friend of Donald Trump Rush Limbaugh, who has a history of making abusive comments about the senator.
The removal of the items followed pressure from Twitter users who urged people to complain to the retail giant.
“Let @amazon know this is unacceptable,” wrote @LesaPamplin, a criminal defence attorney from Texas, with a screengrab of the clothing. “We are not sitting idly by and taking this bullshit.”
An Amazon spokesperson said on Wednesday that the products had been removed, adding: “All sellers must follow our selling guidelines and those who do not will be subject to action including potential removal of their account.”
While the products appear to have been removed, the seller, “The Oxygen Bandit”, still seems to be active on the site with a range of politically themed garments including a “Byedon 2020” hoodie and “Kamala smelled best” and “I’m an AmeriKaren” T-shirts.
Later on Wednesday Harris is due to make US history as the first woman of colour on a major party ticket when she accepts her party’s vice-president nomination at the Democratic national convention.
