(Newswire.net — December 28, 2016) — The largest police union, FOP (Fraternal Order of Police), demanded the online giant Amazon pull the shirts with ‘’offensive’’ slogans from sale.
In an open letter addressed to Amazon’s CEO, Jeff Bezos, FOP president, Chuck Canterbury, wrote that slogans “Bulletproof”, “Black Lives Matter” and “Hands Up, Don’t Shoot,” are “offensive” to the police and furthermore, that they spread “urban myths.”
Canterbury warned Amazon that police officers could think less of this company if it continues selling shirts with slogans which are offensive to the police. It may “damage your company’s good name amongst FOP members and other active and retired law enforcement officers,” Canterbury wrote.
He expressed sadness that some third-party sellers are earning profit by “exploiting racial divisions” in the US.
Amazon still hasn’t officially replie
Speaking to the Guardian, Canterbury pointed out that eight police officers were assassinated in Dallas and Baton Rouge while protecting Black Lives Matter protests.
The incidents Canterbury referred to were not connected to the BLM movement, however, “it happened as a result of the rhetoric of different BLM groups,” he said.
The letter comes a day after Walmart decided to pull the “bulletproof” merchandise from sale, explaining they did it as a response to customer complaints.
Meanwhile, Glenn Morelli, the owner of Connecticut-based Old Glory Merchandise, which is the third-party vendor selling the controversial shirts both through Walmart and Amazon, told CNN that he had already decided to remove the merchandise from his site. He noted that “it wasn’t a big seller at all”. Furthermore, “the Blue Lives Matter sells more than the Black Lives Matter or bulletproof shirts combined. We don’t like to offend anybody,” he added.
In the meantime, Canterbury confirmed FOP members will continue to pressure retailers to drop similar ‘’offensive’’ items from sale.