Nike includes controversial symbol in Pride collection
The pink triangle was used to identify gay men in the Holocaust
© Shutterstock
FASHION Lgbtq
Nike has released a BETRUE collection every year since 2012 in support of making sport inclusive of the LGBTQ community. This year's line, released for June's Pride month, has sparked controversy with its inclusion of a pink triangle.
The pink triangle was used in Nazi concentration camps to mark gay men. Since then, the symbol has been reclaimed by the LGBTQ community, but it remains a controversial symbol with an indisputable history of oppression.
Nike describes the pink triangle as "a shape that has a complex past in LGBTQ culture" and stated that the symbol was "used to identify LGBTQ individuals during WWII, the triangle was reclaimed in the 1970s by pro-gay activists and was later adopted by the AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power (ACT UP) in their memorable 1980s-era ‘Silence=Death’ campaign."
But AIDS advocacy group ACT UP is just one of many to decry the inclusion of the symbol in a commercial venture and question whether the corporation will donate any profits to LGBTQ organisations.
Hey @Nike, we love that you’re moved by our work. How about donating the proceeds to current work we continue to do? https://t.co/Uv7jLfUouk pic.twitter.com/pdXuD6fCMp
— ACT UP New York (@actupny) 31 May 2018
1) That first strapline has been used by adidas in varying forms for years
— Hayden East (@hayden_east) 6 June 2018
2) Putting a pink triangle – once used to mark gay men in the holocaust – on a sneaker does not 'break symbolic boundaries'
3) Will proceeds be going to @actupny, who duly reclaimed the pink triangle? ???? https://t.co/TI70eDIWB0
These men didn’t have a pink triangle because they were hetero. It was because they were homosexual. They were taken from their homes and killed. There is no comparison. How do people not get that? If you want to be an ally 1. Listen! 2. Learn (see 1). 3. Keep learning. pic.twitter.com/06EQClQsyH
— Becca (@beckleberry89) 5 June 2018
jesus fucking christ they're really gonna go make money off the pink triangle - a symbol loaded with RECENT traumatic history- like it isn't fucking disgusting. The pride flag is one thing but printing this on fucking SHOES like it's no big deal feels so gross i'm ???? pic.twitter.com/jSJER2CfPx
— magpie gen???????????? (@tiny_gen) 5 June 2018
The pink triangle represents gay holocaust victims along with a history of resistance against overt brutality.
— Unpaid Emotional Labourer (@rllyrllygross) 1 June 2018
Im not saying Pride has to be 100% political all the time - but some things do. This is not one of those things that can be repackaged as a party
Hey @nike , just following up, these shoes with the pink triangle go on sale in 30, any word for the LGBTQIA+ community on your donations/support of @actupny and other queer charities? #BETRUEhttps://t.co/BSzgcGB5jz pic.twitter.com/mMOYtqu3by
— Richard Wade Morgan (@studiowade) 6 June 2018