Etsy, home turf of small business owners selling their unique wares, is experiencing a firestorm of criticism. Users have mobilized en masse to plan a boycott of the platform over one of its most popular offerings—the store of “Alligator Alcatraz” branded products it showcases. As you can imagine, this controversy is blowing up on social media. Thousands of these posts are freaking out over Etsy’s new policy on discrimination and hateful content.
During that time, it was usually inside the top 20 shopping apps in the whole United States. In addition to this success, the quick availability of merchandise some users found to be discriminatory has created quite the uproar. Etsy’s Discrimination and Hateful Content Policy specifically lists “immigration status” as a protected class. Consumer advocates have long insisted that this policy should bar products of such inflammatory and offensive brands as “Alligator Auschwitz.”
At the moment, Etsy is home to an impressive 20 pages worth of “Alligator Alcatraz”-themed products. Others advertise the elimination of certain races or religions. This controversial new content has been the talk of the town (and Twitter) as users have noticed. Opponents argue that this offensive merchandise goes entirely against Etsy’s policies to disallow discrimination.
The proposed structure of such a boycott has circulated widely on social media. Now, platforms like Meta’s Threads and Reddit have become battlegrounds for conversations on this very topic. One post on Threads promoting the boycott has more than 26,500 likes. That’s a huge vote of confidence for the activists and advocates pushing for change. In the same vein, one Reddit user slammed Etsy’s management in a post titled, “What the hell are they thinking over at Etsy?!” With 69,000 upvotes, this post went on to make the case for action against the platform even further viral.
We think Etsy’s Discrimination and Hateful Content Policy should stop this kind of merchandise from being sold on Etsy in the first place. Critics of the platform note that permitting “Alligator Alcatraz” goods goes against Etsy’s long-standing promise to create a more inclusive marketplace.
“Discrimination and Hateful Content Policy” – Etsy
The story behind Etsy’s controversial merchandise is a familiar one on the expanding e-commerce landscape. Last week, Shopify came under fire when its platform supported a hateful storefront operated by Kanye West, offering a Swastika T-shirt for sale. While that one storefront was taken down, many remained worried about the fact that Shopify was still hosting other storefronts with antisemitic design.
Talk surrounding the Etsy boycott has moved onto other social media platforms, such as TikTok, Facebook, and X (formerly Twitter). Users are continuously posting and sharing their pet peeves, thoughts, and experiences. They are calling on other groups to withdraw their support for the platform until it stops allowing what they believe is toxic merchandise.