Urban Outfitters Still Selling Shirt in Stores

It's been confirmed that Urban Outfitters STILL HAS THE SHIRT IN STORES. They think they can combat an internet campaign by taking it off the site, but leaving the shirt in stores -- without admitting a mistake in judgment.

TELL Richard A. Hayne, Chairman of the Board of Directors and President of Urban Outfitters that it needs to be PULLED FROM STORES.

EMAIL: richard.hayne@urbanout.com

TEL: 215-564-2313; FAX: 215-568-1549

SNAIL:

Urban Outfitters, Inc.
1809 Walnut Street
Philadelphia, PA 19103

Urban Outfitters Follow-up

My letter to Richard Hayne/who else is blogging about this:

My letter:

Dear Mr. Hayne:

My wife and I are adopting a girl from Ethiopia. My sister was also adopted into my family via a closed domestic adoption in 1976. I grew up in Lancaster, PA and have been a customer of Urban Outfitters in Pennsylvania, New York and Los Angeles.

I've recently seen what I consider to be a demeaning and offensive T-shirt, sold at Urban Outfitters, which reads: "Adopting is the New Black". Obviously a reference to Angelina Jolie and Madonna, it nevertheless trivializes adoption, adoptees, the motives of adoptive parents and diminishes the bond they share. All of this adds up to re-enforcing a cultural prejudice that adopted kids are somehow "less than" children, in comparison to biological children. This is certainly not how my parents felt, and certainly not how I feel (I am also the father to two "bio" sons).

I am very active on the online adoption community, running a blog that gets a thousand visitors per week and links to approximately 150 other adoptive family/adoptee blogs, which receive similar traffic.

I assure you, those of us who seek to help our families and improve the lives of children here or abroad, will not patronize a store that seeks to belittle our children in pursuit of a misguided attempt at cultural commentary.

I strongly urge you to consider the impact this shirt will have on the very real day-to-day lives of adopted children. I hope that you will be moved to take action and remove this shirt from your store.

Other thoughtful posts on this issue:

A NEW FLOWER BLOOMS

LIFE IN FITZVILLE

OUR JOURNEY TO "LITTLE MAPLE" AND BACK

THIRD MOM

THE VOYAGE

CHSFS ETHIOPIA FORUM

4 LITTLE BIRDIES

Urban Outfitters' "New Black" Eye

Adopted children are not trendy accessories. Not fashion items. Not fads.

They are our hearts.

To URBAN OUTFITTERS, they are the butt of a cruel joke:

ADOPTING IS THE NEW BLACK

Ha ha. Sadly, most people don't hang with Angelina and Madonna, so they won't get the joke. Who will "experience" this fine foray into humor are adopted kids and their parents. They will be the ones who get the "pleasure" of being demeaned, of having their bond trivialized. Adopted kids are already prone to feeling like they don't really "belong". Imagine the "fun" of having their peers wearing these shirts which suggest that their parents acted not out of love but out of a desire to be "trendy" or "hip". How "cool" to have your existence equated to a Birkin bag, a Louis Vuitton or Ugg boots! And for adoptive parents, how "irreverent" to suggest that your child is a commodity, obtained thoughtlessly, for the purpose of self-aggrandizement and status.

What makes this all the more disgusting is that the founder, Chairman and President of the company, Richard A. Hayne, is a staunch supporter of a "family values" politician, Rick Santorum. I would love to know how the above T-shirt fits with Santorum's Christian beliefs and "pro-family" stance.

Evidently, Richard Hayne's idea of valuable customers don't extend to adoptees or adoptive families. Other customers Haynes decided not to value include those of Mexican descent, Jewish people and African-Americans. The store has featured shirts with the slogans "New Mexico, Cleaner Than Regular Mexico" and "Everybody Love a Jewish Girl" (the slogan was surrounded by dollar signs, showing that Shylock is alive and well in this century) and the board game GHETTOPOLY , which, I'm sure, had a very realistic portrayal of black, urban life.

Oddly, given his politics, he also decided it was cool to sell a magnet set in which one could play "dress up" with an image of a crucified Jesus... put him in a nice hat and a dress, for example.

I think we need to inform Richard Hayne that our children are not accessories.

Please join me in calling, writing and emailing Mr. Hayne to communicate our feelings on the way he chooses to make money:

Richard A. Hayne
Chairman of the Board of Directors and President

Urban Outfitters, Inc.
1809 Walnut Street
Philadelphia, PA 19103

richard.hayne@urbanout.com

Tel: 215-564-2313

Fax: 215-568-1549

PLEASE PASS THIS POST ALONG TO EVERYONE AND ANYONE YOU KNOW WHO CAN HELP TAKE ACTION!