Using historical icons with modern interpretations has always created controversy. Flying the Confederate Flag, for example, could represent a past era of Southern sovereignty or, on the other hand, symbolize and promote the Ku Klux Klan.
A similar controversy was ignited yet again when Nike used the Betsy Ross 13-star flag as a design on their shoes. Though the creation of the 13-star flag itself, in 1776, is not tied to white supremacy, groups in the past have appropriated the flag for racist uses. Betsy Ross herself was not linked to white supremacy, yet many interpretations of this flag associate it with an era of slavery and African-American oppression.
After releasing the shoes, Colin Kaepernick, a football player and Nike endorser, informed Nike that he felt the flag was an offensive symbol. Thus, Nike canceled the design.
Yet some people feel this was unnecessary because the usage of the flag was not meant to offend or demean any groups; it was simply supposed to be a fashionable design on a shoe. Personally, I believe that Nike needed to cancel the shoes because the flag is seen to some people as a hate symbol. Even if that wasn’t the company’s intentions, they still need to be aware of the connotations associated with their designs. Kaepernick’s status as a Nike endorser must have played a significant role in influencing Nike to withdraw the design because of the possibility of him tainting the company’s reputation. Had it been anyone else questioning the design, I believe that, unfortunately, they wouldn’t have had such a considerable influence on the company’s decision.
Sources:
https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/02/nikes-betsy-ross-controversy-highlights-new-dangers-in-american-icons.html
https://www.wsj.com/articles/nike-nixes-betsy-ross-flag-sneaker-after-colin-kaepernick-intervenes-11562024126
This article is really interesting because this was an issue that I did not know about. It appears that Nike didn't actually have bad intentions because they were trying to celebrate the 4th of July which was the release date for these shoes. I'm a little surprised that Nike decided to use that flag instead of our current flag because that would have been more relevant and not as controversial. I found out that by recalling these shoes, Nike started a twitter war between republicans and democrats. On top of that, Nike took an economic hit from some red states as a result of their actions.
ReplyDeletehttps://www.npr.org/2019/07/02/737977542/nike-pulls-shoes-featuring-betsy-ross-flag-over-concerns-about-racist-symbolism
In addition, the history of the 13-start flag remains obscure; though many young Americans grew up being told that the 13-star American flag was made by Betsy Ross, specifically as a gift for George Washington, some historians argue that this may not have taken place at all, as it is not based in historical fact. Regardless of the true origins, the Flag Act of 1777 established the 13-star flag as the official American flag, and mandated that "the union be thirteen stars, white in a blue field, representing a new Constellation.”
ReplyDeleteSources:
Deletehttps://www.npr.org/2019/07/02/737977542/nike-pulls-shoes-featuring-betsy-ross-flag-over-concerns-about-racist-symbolism
https://time.com/5619082/nike-sneaker-betsy-ross-flag-kaepernick/
http://www.ushistory.org/betsy/flagtale.html
I agree that the thirteen star American flag design on Nike shoes should have been cancelled. Although the intent was not to demean certain groups, the negative historical connotations the flag carried did indeed offend people, and in my opinion, no company should associate themselves with potential hate symbols. I know that many companies have sold some questionable merchandise, so I decided to do some research on other companies and controversial products that they pulled from sale. In 2018, H&M released a sweatshirt that read "Coolest monkey in the jungle" and used a black child model. Similarly to Nike's shoes, it took a famous figure, in this case pop singer The Weeknd, to speak up and express his discomfort. This also ties to the Jim Crow era we are learning in class because the term "monkey" is a historically racial slur. I think companies need to be much more conscious of the things they are releasing and not only think about aesthetic design, but also the potential historical connotations certain symbols might have.
ReplyDeletehttps://www.insider.com/clothing-items-pulled-from-stores-2017-6#in-january-2018-hm-apologized-for-using-a-black-child-in-what-some-people-called-a-racist-sweatshirt-ad-but-many-thought-that-wasnt-enough-1