Etsy Faces User Boycott Over Immigration Detention Center Merch
Etsy Users are urging customers to boycott the online marketplace after “Alligator Alcatraz” merch was found on its website. The term refers to the Trump administration detention centre in the Florida Everglades. Sky News reported that the facility has been compared to a “dog cage” with some detainees saying “not even sunlight gets in.”
It’s built from Federal Emergency Management Agency trailers and temporary shelters at the site of a training airport in Miami-Dade County and is situated in the middle of a natural alligator habitat, according to Fast Company.
Boycotts against Etsy
“Alligator Alcatraz” merchandise is available for purchase on Etsy, despite the company claiming to ban “content which directly or indirectly contains violent or degrading commentary,” which includes characteristics such as a person’s race, religion, gender, or immigration status.
Etsy sellers have called for boycotts on social media, arguing that the company has violated its own policy. The boycott has primarily been organised on Threads and Reddit, TechCrunch notes. Some Etsy sellers are concerned that their online businesses could be affected by the controversy.
Online stores selling controversial merchandise
Etsy isn’t the only online marketplace that has been caught selling controversial items. In February, Shopify received backlash after Kanye West’s online shop was found selling swastika shirts. West’s website featured one item for sale: a white shirt with a black Nazi swastika in its center, listed under the product name HH-01.
Amazon was also under fire after hosting right-wing militia merchandise and products celebrating QAnon conspiracies; it subsequently pulled those products down.
Image: Oberon Copeland
