In the face of mounting criticism from law enforcement organizations, Amazon defended the sale of anti-police apparel on its online marketplace, saying it wants to provide customers “with the widest possible selection” of goods.
“We do not endorse the content of any particular book, video, or product,” an Amazon spokeswoman told the Washington Free Beacon recently in response to questions regarding its continued sale of apparel marked with the slogan “Blue Lives Murder.”
“We understand that some customers may find some products objectionable, and we provide customers with a variety of ways to engage and express their views, including through product reviews,” the company added in a statement.
TheBlaze reported earlier this month that despite more than a year of repeated complaints from pro-police organizations, “Blue Lives Murder” products — such as a blue T-shirt being sold for $39.99, a black T-shirt, and face masks — were still available for purchase on Amazon’s website.
Since then, it appears that a black baseball cap for $16.99 and an outdoor headscarf for $15.99 have been added to the list of options, though the Free Beacon reported that those products may be removed soon.
Amazon’s refusal to remove the blatantly anti-police products stands in contrast to its swift removal of products deemed offensive to progressive figures such as Vice President Kamala Harris and movements such as the transgender ideology.
The tech giant has acted in the past to remove T-shirts mocking Harris and announced this year that it would no longer “sell books that frame LGBTQ+ identity as a mental illness” following its deplatforming of Ryan T. Anderson’s bestseller, “When Harry Became Sally.”
In February, Amazon pulled a documentary about conservative Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas during Black History Month without explanation. And in 2019, the company kowtowed to the progressive Council on American-Islamic Relations and removed a litany of products — including bath mats and doormats — considered offensive to Muslims.
Washington, D.C., Fraternal Order of Police President Gerald Neill Jr. blasted the company for its biased continued sale of the “hate items.”
“Amazon has a role in society as an industry leader to set a high standard, and they’re not doing that,” he said. “I think Amazon is not being evenhanded.”
In a letter sent last month, the Detectives’ Endowment Association, New York City’s detective union, slammed Amazon for putting cops “at peril and risk” by selling the “disgusting” items.
In calling for the removal of the products, the union’s chief financial officer, Brian Olsavsky, pointed to Amazon’s own policy that states the retailer does not allow products that “promote, incite, or glorify hatred, violence, racial, sexual or religious intolerance, or promote organization with such views.”
*story by The Blaze
