Posted by
Michael on Sunday, January 21, 2007 5:28:49 PM
Urban Outfitters recently got some heat for selling kaffiyehs with the name "anti-war scarf." I
blogged on this story when it broke and find it mildy amusing. They've since
stopped selling the garment in the States:
The trendy U.S. clothing store Urban Outfitters is no longer selling
keffiyehs, the traditional Arab headdress, in its stores or online.
In an e-mail to a pro-Israel activist, company Chief
Executive Officer Dick Heyne said selling the scarves was not intended
to imply sympathy or support for terrorists or terrorism, The Jerusalem
Post reports.
The scarves, priced at $20, were available in different
color combinations as part of Urban Outfitters' spring fashion
accessories.
It is often seen on college campuses where students wear it as a symbol of solidarity with the Palestinians.
The manager of one New York Urban Outfitters store said the keffiyeh was his top selling scarf.
"Due to the sensitive nature of this item, we will no longer
offer it for sale, a notice on Urban Outfitters Web site said. "We
apologize if we offended anyone, this was by no means our intention."
Now, despite how the impression you may have recieved after reading that article, Urban Outfitters has not discontinued its selling of the kaffiyeh. Rather, they are
still selling the item in the United Kingdom under the monikor of "desert scarf," which could probably wind up offending a whole other group of people. Here's the
model shot: