Walmart is scouring its third-party merchandise website with a catchphrase widely seen as a decrease in Black Lives Matter Movement against police brutality and racism.
The nation’s largest retailer said it is halting sales of “All Lives Matter” items indefinitely after hearing from some workers and customers who questioned the intent behind the phrase. “We will continue to sell other variations, including ‘Blue Lives Matter,'” a Walmart spokesperson told CBS MoneyWatch in an email.
“We fundamentally believe that all lives are important and that each individual deserves respect,” said the Walmart spokesperson. “However, by listening, we come to understand that some, but not all, people use the phrase ‘All lives matter’ in the current environment intentionally downplayed the focus on the painful reality of racial inequality.”
In recent days, Walmart has faced criticism on social media for allowing the sale of products that critics consider to refute the Black Lives Matter movement. The slogan became the protest cry of protesters after the 2012 murder of Trayvon Martin in Florida and more recently the police murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis in June.
The retailer’s move is one of many carried out by corporations and public figures, as the United States fights racism after the murders of Floyd, Breonna Taylor and other blacks by the police.
Starbucks earlier this month reversed a policy that had banned the BLM outfit, with the coffee giant now encouraging workers to feel free to “wear your BLM pin or shirt.” Taco Bell also bowed to workers’ demands that the fast food chain allow them to use Black Lives Matter Masks.
Six Flags Over Georgia recently apologized for an incident in which a security guard detained a mother and their three children because they wore T-shirts with slogans associated with the BLM movement.
A Baltimore-based chain of 20 restaurants also apologized after one of its restaurants denied service to her and a black woman. 9 year old son because of his clothes, much like the one a white boy is wearing, finishing his meal nearby.
Walmart last week said it had removed the Mississippi flag wearing a Confederate battle emblem from stores in the state where state lawmakers last weekend voted to replace the symbol.
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