URBAN OUTFITTERS HAS been forced to apologise for one of its sweatshirts, which appeared blood-spattered and seemed to allude to a college shooting that took place in the 1970s.
The “vintage Kent State sweatshirt” was spotted by internet users last night.
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As you can see, it appears to have blood spatters.
This was deemed particularly insensitive as Kent State University was the site of a mass shooting in 1970, where four unarmed students were shot dead by the Ohio National Guard and nine were injured.
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Following the uproar, Urban Outfitters apologised for the sweatshirt and removed it from their website.
The company claimed that there was “no blood on this shirt” and stated that they never intended to invoke the tragic shooting at Kent State.
This isn’t the first time that Urban Outfitters has landed itself in hot water. As Fast Company notes, they have a long history of offending minority groups.
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Earlier this year, it was criticised for selling t-shirts with the phrases “depression” and “eat less” emblazoned on them.
It’s also the second time in recent weeks that an international clothing chain has found itself the subject of controversy for selling offensive clothing – a few weeks ago, Zara was forced to apologise for selling a pyjamas that bore a likeness to the uniforms worn by Jews during the Holocaust.
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