Some shoppers balk at retailers peddling new 'Juneteenth' merchandise

June 20, 2022 00:00:00

People take pictures with a new mural in honour of Juneteenth, which commemorates the end of slavery in Texas, two years after the 1863 Emancipation Proclamation freed slaves elsewhere in the United States, in Galveston, Texas, on Sunday — Reuters

NEW YORK, June 19 (Reuters): Clothing retailer Kohl's is offering gray, green and red "Juneteenth 1865" tank tops and t-shirts for juniors and boys for $23.99. JCPenney.com hopes to lure shoppers with dozens of wall hangings featuring abstract graphic designs and silhouettes of Black women, priced at $60 to $160 apiece.

In the first big push to commercialize Juneteenth, commemorated by Black people for generations as the day in 1865 when a Union general informed a group of enslaved people in Texas that they were free, a handful of major retailers are rolling out merchandise.

But some of the goods, from cotton tank tops with red, yellow and green US flags, to lawn accessories featuring slogans such as "Freedom," are raising eyebrows among shoppers who accuse retailers of exploiting Juneteenth to cash in on President Joe Biden making June 19 a federal holiday in 2021.

In May, Walmart began marketing pints of a new "Celebrated Edition" red velvet and cheesecake Juneteenth Ice Cream until complaints surfaced on Twitter, prompting Walmart to remove it.

"Just saw Pride and Juneteenth ice cream at Walmart I think we're in the bad place," one Twitter user posted on June 11.

Walmart said in a statement in May that the retailer had "received feedback that a few items caused concern for some of our customers." The retailer apologized and said it will remove items as appropriate.

Walmart.com also sells an array of children's books on the history of Juneteenth, as well as dozens of t-shirts.

Dollar Tree also drew criticism on social media for selling Juneteenth party decorations in non-traditional colors in May. The decorations are manufactured by vendors who aren't descendants of slaves themselves, according to the National Assembly of American Slavery Descendants, an advocacy group that supports reparations for Black American descendants of slavery. Dollar Tree did not immediately return an email seeking comment.