US retailers like Walmart, Kmart and Sears have pledged to stop selling Confederate flags and related paraphernalia, but major e-commerce platforms like Amazon and eBay have yet to pull products bearing the emblem.
A church shooting in Charleston, South Carolina that left nine black Americans dead has prompted a wave of protests over the presence of the flag, especially in the south where it is considered a symbol of southern pride for some and a potent reminder of the racism inherent in the regions history for others.
South Carolina has said it will take the red banner with a blue X and stars down from its state capitol building. Lawmakers and protesters are calling for similar measures in other states.
Amazon and eBay, though, have remained silent on the issue. Neither company responded to e-mailed questions from Quartz about whether they will join the ban.
A search for Confederate flag on Amazon yields over 30,000 resultsincluding bikinis, electronics, and home decor decorated with the flag. Theres a Confederate flag mink bedspread, antique-look flag iPhone covers, and even elaborate lampshades.
A search on eBay pulls up over 1,600 listings.
While these companies remain mum, Amazon customers have taken to the platforms question and answer sections to express their thoughts. Regarding a polyester Confederate Rebel Flag sold by Rhode Island Novelty for $5.05, shoppers recently asked:
(Amazon)
Some previous patrons of Rhode Island Noveltys Confederate flags offered helpful answers:
" When blacks riot and kill whites, can we call for statues of Martin Luther King to be torn down? "
Damn good question! I anxiously await to see what reply, if any, that you get!
There would be a demand to erect new statues. King was one of the greatest leftist revolutionary organizers in Americal history and has universal support in the left, from universal salesmanship, academia, government, and the media. His persona is the result of an ongoing propaganda campaign from which there is no hiding and no disagreement with it is allowed.
As part of a compromise in 2000, lawmakers agreed to remove the Confederate flag from the top of the Capitol dome and place it across the street while also adding a monument to African- Americans. But the legislation mandated that only a supermajority of the legislature could change that set-up going forward.