Story at a glance
- Amazon pulled several clothing items containing a derogatory slur against the senator and vice presidential candidate.
- The phrasing is targeting Harris’s relationship with former San Francisco mayor Willie Brown in the 1990s.
Online retail giant Amazon is removing clothing items that make offensive references to Kamala Harris, the vice presidential pick for Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden.
USA TODAY reports Tuesday that the items were a series of shirts and sweatshirts manufactured by the brand The Oxygen Bandit. The clothing feature graphics with a riff on Biden’s campaign logo, reading “Joe and the h–,” a derogatory slur used to describe a sex worker.
The seller, The Oxygen Bandit, is offering clothing with a similar design to Joe Biden’s campaign logo. https://t.co/FbExxlH2M4
— USA TODAY Politics (@usatodayDC) August 19, 2020
Prices reportedly ranged from $24.99 to $42.99 before the items were removed.
“All sellers must follow our selling guidelines and those who do not will be subject to action including potential removal of their account. We are working to remove these products,” an Amazon spokesperson told reporters.
The offensive logo is a part of smear campaigns targeting Harris over her previous relationship with San Francisco Mayor Willie Brown in the 1990s. This was prior to her successful campaign for district attorney of San Francisco in 2003.
Since Biden selected her as his running mate, Harris has incurred some personal attacks, among them a conspiracy theory claiming her parents were not naturalized U.S. citizens at the time of her birth, making her ineligible for the vice president role.
Multiple outlets have fact-checked this claim and proved it false.
Speaking to The Grio, Harris addressed the claims and said that they are a distraction tactic.
“They’re going to engage in lies, they’re going to engage in deception, they’re going to engage in an attempt to distract from the real issues that are impacting the American people,” Harris said.
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