Support NeoGAF

[Zolo]

http://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-...of-rainbow-themed-swastika-t-shirts-backfires

Think of the swastika and chances are that what comes to mind is the murderous regime of Adolf Hitler's Nazi Germany.

But the symbol is at least 5,000 years old and is incorporated into Hindu, Buddhist and Jain iconography. Even today, in the Indian subcontinent and parts of Southeast Asia it is not uncommon to see the symbol painted on buildings and vehicles as a sign of good fortune.

It is this second meaning that a clothing company, KA Design, says it was trying to recapture when it recently launched a line of T-shirts on Teespring.com featuring its "new" swastika, emblazoned with rainbow colors and the words "love," "peace" and "zen."

In a video posted on its Facebook page on July 12, the company (tagline: "Questioning Boundaries") says that for thousands of years, the swastika meant something positive: "But one day, Nazism. ... They stigmatized the swastika forever."

KA Design promised: "The swastika is coming back, together with Peace, together with Love, together with Respect, together with Freedom."

Then (not surprisingly) came the backlash.

One person, referring to the Holocaust, posted a review on the company's page: "If this is some kind of PR stunt, it's not going your way. Tasteless, inconsiderate and disgusting! Extremely offensive to the 6 million who lost their lives!"

One reviewer said even if it was meant to be genuine, "there are some symbols and ideas that are too abhorrent to ever be considered for 'rehabilitation'. That symbol led to and presided over so many innocent deaths of all races. it should be buried forever."

However, there were a few supporters of the effort. Andrew Anglin, the founder of the neo-Nazi Daily Stormer website, praised the shirts: "I have been trying to do this for years, and I am thankful that hippies are finally getting on-board with that particular project. ... I endorse these shirts," he wrote.

It wasn't exactly the response KA Design had hoped for. The company responded to the burgeoning controversy first with an about-face, putting out a redesign that incorporated a red slash through the swastika. However, by Monday afternoon, a search on the Teespring.com page for the newly redesigned t-shirts returned only an error message.

On the company's Facebook page was a post announcing that "Hatred and Nazism have won.

"We brought out the worst in people," the message acknowledged. Included was an absolution of Teespring, which the post said "has nothing to do with this project. It is a beautiful company with the nicest people around. Leave all the Hate to us."

 

[SuperBanana]

KA Design promised: "The swastika is coming back,

What's one little holocaust to get in the way of a sweet symbol?

 

[HStallion]

Did Randall from Clerks think this up?

 

[wandering]

Is the company even from South or East Asia? What business do they have reclaiming shit?

 

[Slayven]

a few supporters of the effort. Andrew Anglin, the founder of the neo-Nazi Daily Stormer website,

There should be a list of people that if they support you, you are fucking up

 

[Dice//]

Oof. Peace, love, some other stuff...sure the intention was good-spirited...But waaay too soon. Might be better to wait till, y'know, victims of said atrocities are in their graves before breathing a whiff of 'taking it back.'

This was just a bad idea on everyone who helped 'ok' this project and it took a conscious effort to get this so far. Boo.

 

[JCHandsom]

Nooooooooooooooooooo

 

[UnemployedVillain]

But the symbol is at least 5,000 years old and is incorporated into Hindu, Buddhist and Jain iconography. Even today, in the Indian subcontinent and parts of Southeast Asia it is not uncommon to see the symbol painted on buildings and vehicles as a sign of good fortune.

It is this second meaning that a clothing company, KA Design, says it was trying to recapture when it recently launched a line of T-shirts on Teespring.com featuring its "new" swastika, emblazoned with rainbow colors and the words "love," "peace" and "zen."

Uh huh, that's why they referred to it as a "swastika" and not a "manji", right? That's why the bends are in the wrong direction for a manji, right? These idiots knew what they were doing or they are even dumber than I thought possible

 

[MIMIC]

"The swastika is coming back, together with Peace, together with Love, together with Respect, together with Freedom."

*hearty laugh*

EDIT: You know what? The shirts don't look as bad as I thought they would >_< Would never wear one though.

 

[Zolo]

Uh huh, that's why they referred to it as a "swastika" and not a "manji", right? That's why the bends are in the wrong direction for a manji, right? These idiots knew what they were doing or they are even dumber than I thought possible

Yeah. The design with the symbol rotated as the Nazis did it says it all.

 

[Cranster]

People really need to understand that regardless of what it stood for before, the Swastika is now a symbol of fascism, hatred, bigotry and evil.

 

[Escape Goat]

I guess they thought they could force it. Unlike gays repurposing the pink triangle (inverted from its Nazi representation) into a symbol for equality, this symbol is not so narrowly defined. The swastika means too much to too many people to be redeemed.

 

[Jawbreaker]

For those who don't click the link, here are the shirts:

I had to laugh at the first one. Seriously?

 

[Slayven]

For those who don't click the link, here are the shirts:

Look like they were designed in 5 minutes

 

[parrotbeak]

Lol their facebook page says:

One Love in America.
Stop the Racism.
BUY our clothes

Ya this company just needs to fold up and pretend it didn't happen.

 

[sarcastor]

three things that Nitler ruined - Europe. that mustache. and the swastika.

 

[Jawbreaker]

Lol they're facebook page says:



Ya this company just needs to fold up and pretend it didn't happen.

What a bunch of clowns.

 

[Dyle]

I can believe that the 3rd one is an honest attempt to re-contextualize the symbol, but the 2nd one uses the angled swastika so it's clearly hateful, and the 1st one looks the PS2's main menu

 

[wandering]

Uh huh, that's why they referred to it as a "swastika" and not a "manji", right? That's why the bends are in the wrong direction for a manji, right? These idiots knew what they were doing or they are even dumber than I thought possible

Manji is specifically the Japanese term. Swastika is the general term in English, derived from Sanskrit. The Nazi swastika is the Hakenkreuz. And, contrary to popular Western belief, both left-facing and right-facing swastikas are used in religious iconography.

 

[Xe4]

I respect the effort to take back symbols of hatred, but it had to have been known this would've backfired. I mean, an idiot could've seen this coming a mile away.

 

[kirblar]

Ancient religions get to keep using it.

Your new start up does not.

 

[Dynamite Shikoku]

Shitty company trying to cash in on alt right idiots

 

[HStallion]

 

[Fat4all]

"You knew exactly what it was gonna come off like."

 

[Nevasleep]

That first tee shirt reminds me of this screen saver:

 

[UnemployedVillain]

Manji is specifically the Japanese term. Swastika is the general term in English, derived from Sanskrit. The Nazi swastika is the Hakenkreuz. And, contrary to popular Western belief, both left-facing and right-facing swastikas are used in religious iconography.

Ah, that's cool. I guess you learn something new every day! I mostly only knew it in the context of Japanese Buddhism

 

[Hitlersaurus Christ]

Well, the swastika IS coming back. They aren't wrong about that.

 

[BlastCore]

Talk about missing the forest for the trees.

 

[Rorschach]

It never went away in some places. Map symbol for temples.

You'd have to be crazy to wear that in the western world, though.

 

[timetokill]

It never went away in some places. Map symbol for temples.

You'd have to be crazy to wear that in the western world, though.

That's also going in the opposite direction, so... not the swastika

 

[TimeEffect]

Guy 1: "Let's swirl a bunch of swastikas"

Guy 2: "Dammit, that's not obvious enough!"

Guy 1: "Let's make sure to mention it's a swastika"

Guy 2: "Perfect!"

 

[SinCityAssassin]

You can dress up the manji enough to make it distinct from a knee-jerk reaction of "swastika!?" but jesus christ.

 

[Ac30]

It never went away in some places. Map symbol for temples.

You'd have to be crazy to wear that in the western world, though.

It's not tilted 45' there, which is one of the defining features of the swastikas used by the Nazis. Which is why the second shirt is just "WTF are you doing?!"

 

[Patrick S.]

PewDiePie will want one.

 

[BigJonsson]

*facepalm*

 

[Mung]

Uh huh, that's why they referred to it as a "swastika" and not a "manji", right? That's why the bends are in the wrong direction for a manji, right? These idiots knew what they were doing or they are even dumber than I thought possible

No in India it is a swastika. It comes from sankrit. The bends can go in either direction.

 

[LewieP]

I was pretty wierded out when I saw quite a lot of people with these tattoos around (in Cambodia), before I realised it was the Buddhist version of the symbol before the Nazi's appropriated it.

 

[always crazy bacon]

For those who don't click the link, here are the shirts:

I had to laugh at the first one. Seriously?

Anticlockwise not clockwise you massive half informed bellends. They should be using a Sauwastika. Even then, this was a bad bad idea.

 

[Creaking]

It does make me wonder where a symbol like the swastika will be a hundred years from now.




Ashes?

Probably ashes.

 

[theaface]

PewDiePie will want one.

Yep. He'll order several of the Peace one to 'better himself'.

 

[Discotheque]

"The swastika is coming back"

lmao, what a marketing tagline.

 

[BocoDragon]

I like the intent... "subvert an object of hate by juxtaposing it with its opposite"....

But it would just never work. You can't unthink what it usually means.

 

[Kinyou]

KA Design promised: "The swastika is coming back...

 

[thetrin]

It never went away in some places. Map symbol for temples.

You'd have to be crazy to wear that in the western world, though.

Nah, they're just pointing out important Nazi outposts for us good citizens to reclaim. Duh.

 

[Browny]

Did Randall from Clerks think this up?

Iunderstoodthatreference.gif

What a stupendously bad idea.

 

[Magypsy]

For those who don't click the link, here are the shirts:

I had to laugh at the first one. Seriously?

Hahahaha holy shit

I, wow, what?

 

[Rentahamster]

So they wanted to reclaim the traditional manji (swastika)....by using the Nazi version of it? That doesn't make any sense.

 

[ElectricBlanketFire]

These guys should get together with the Bodega company. They clearly have their finger on the pulse of society.

 

[nampad]

Yes, swastikas were never gone in Asia but aren't they mirrored from the Nazi version?

 

[erpg]

Steps to reclaim the manji symbol from Nazis:

1. Call it a swastika
2. Flip it so it looks like a swastika


Yup, that'll work.