Last week, Chinese retailer Shein sparked public outrage after one of their items was recently launched. Apparently, the brand was selling Muslim prayer mats as casual rugs and people were using them for decorative purposes.
Many consumers, influencers, and Muslims raised their voices against Shein’s pathetic attempt at cultural appropriation. They expressed their disappointment in the brand for profiting off the Islamic faith.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CCLS9-4lC85/
https://twitter.com/Nabela/status/1279145924141486087
for all of you who order off of shein; they’re taking muslim clothing / prayer mats and labelling them as ‘tassel rugs’ as well as exploiting their workers and paying them less than minimum wage. they’re making money off of cultural clothing & traditions and its absolutely vile+ pic.twitter.com/bPkBD0fWvy
— neve ! (@fairyofsunkyu) July 5, 2020
repeat after me.
STOP SHOPPING AT SHEIN. pic.twitter.com/ud87Q9WP9J— haleema (@huhleemaa) July 4, 2020
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The holy mats were renamed and sold as ‘fringe trim carpets.’ As you can see in the pictures above, images of Kaaba and mosques were printed on them.
A highly offensive marketing gig by a global brand.
To add insult to injury, Shein is a repeat offender. According to some netizens, the brand is notorious for stealing credit from other cultures, especially from South Asia.
https://twitter.com/EtihaA/status/1279143434918531074
Shein responds
Following the public backlash, Shein removed the products from their website and publicly apologized as it was a ‘highly offensive oversight’ on their part.
“To our community – we made a serious mistake recently by selling prayer mats as decorative rugs on our site. We understand this was a highly offensive oversight and are truly sorry.”
https://www.instagram.com/p/CCRK5UPHgY0/
“Since it was brought to our attention, we immediately removed the products from our website and asked our vendor to stop selling to others.”
Shein also says that they have formed a product review community with staff members from different cultures and religions to make sure this doesn’t happen again.
“As a global brand, we vow to do much better in educating ourselves on different cultures, religions and traditions to ensure our diverse community is respected and honored. We offer our sincerest apologies to all whom we have hurt and offended and hope we can earn your forgiveness.”
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