Monday, September 3, 2012

Chris Brown "I'd Hit That" Shirts Found To Be Offensive

Honestly I think it's "offensive" or whatever, but I'd wear this shirt.



By Ashley Davis, Fri, August 31, 2012

A shirt for sale at the Beacons Festival in Skipton North Yorks has been criticized for trivializing Rihanna's experience with domestic violence, according to the Daily Mail.

On the front, the shirt shows a photograph of Rihanna with the words "I'd hit that." On the back, a picture of Chris Brown is shown with his fists clenched, as if he were ready to hit someone.

While the phrase "I'd hit that" has sexual connotations, it's clear that the use of it here has a different meaning.

The organization claims they have stopped selling the shirts and the graphic design company said that it has withdrawn the shirt from their line of clothing.

Yet festival goers noted that the shirts remained on sale for the entirety of the festival.

One festival attendee, Jim DeBarker, said, "When I first sighted the t-shirt a small crowd had formed around the stall imploring the vendors to take the t-shirt off sale due to the offense it was causing at the allegedly family-friendly festival."

The vendors replied to this by stating that the suppliers had made the merchandise so they were "obliged to keep it on sale." Customers were told to buy a different t-shirt if the Rihanna shirt offended them.

DeBarker asked the production office to comment on the shirt that apparently advocates domestic violence, and their response was "outwardly sympathetic." Despite the sympathy, the shirt had remained on sale for the entire weekend.

Teresa Parker, from a large domestic violence charity called Woman's Aid, said domestic violence is nothing to joke around about. "Domestic violence is certainly not a laughing matter - it is experienced by 1 in 4 women at some point in their lifetime and 2 women every week are killed by their current or former partner," Parker said.

"The t-shirt trivializes violence in relationships, at a time wen Women's Aid is working to try and educate teenagers about healthy relationships, to try and reduce the amount of domestic violence in the future and ultimately save lives," she said.

Parker wants the people who produce the shirt to think seriously about the message they're sending before they sell it.

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