“I can’t breathe”, the last words of George Floyd went down in history after he died a painful death in police custody last month. The 46-year-old’s demise sparked a worldwide outrage over racism, as many took to streets and demanded to be heard, stressing ‘Black Lives Matter'.
With that being said, e-commerce giant Amazon came under fire for putting up the ‘I can’ breathe’ t-shirts on sale, with a picture of Floyd being pinned down under the knee of Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin. After facing flak for the insensitive idea, the company has withdrawn the advertisement.
According to a report by BBC, the kid’s t-shirt was listed at a price of 14.99 USD (Rs 1,136). Amazon pulled down the post made by a third party and stated that the case is under investigation.
As per Amazon’s selling policy, items depicting crime or anything on similar grounds are prohibited.
In its statement, Amazon mentioned, "All sellers must follow our selling guidelines and those who do not will be subject to action including potential removal of their account. The product in question is no longer available".
Earlier this month, Amazon said it will donate a total of 10 million USD to organisations that are working to bring about social justice and improve the lives of Black and African Americans.
Recipients -- selected with the help of Amazon's Black Employee Network (BEN) -- include groups focused on combating systemic racism through the legal system as well as those dedicated to expanding educational and economic opportunity for Black communities.
Donations to the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), National Urban League, and UNCF, among others, seek to support education and justice for Black communities across the U.S., Amazon said in a blog post.
"Amazon's leadership and BEN have worked hand-in-hand to identify organizations in the Black community that make a difference and will contribute to them in a meaningful way. In addition to the organizations listed, we will work with our chapters to identify local groups to support," said Angelina Howard, President of BEN.
"We will continue these conversations about how Amazon can support employees and the entire Black community beyond these tragic recent events."
