The cringe-worthy “camp” button-down shirt in a gray-and-white-striped pattern for sale on Gap online stores looks like it would fit right in at the notorious World War II Nazi concentration camp.
A screenshot from Facebook taken by the Jewish Telegraphic Agency shows an ad for the "camp shirt" from Gap. As if the name weren’t questionable enough, the ad states: “You don’t want to miss this.” The item has since been removed from the store after a wave of backlash.
After being pressed about the item by the Israeli media outlet, Gap issued an apology and said the shirt and associated name contravened the company’s values.
“We are deeply sorry for this oversight,” read a statement from a Gap Inc. spokesperson. “It was never our intention to design a shirt that could be interpreted or associated in this way, and thus inconsistent with the beliefs and values of our company. We removed the item as a result.”
The “camp shirt” was on sale as of Thursday for $25, down from its original price of $49.50, according to the New York Post.
Gap Inc. is not a stranger to upsetting the public with questionable design decisions. One of its shirts in 2012 sported text which said “Manifest Destiny” - the 19th century belief that the United States was destined to take over North America, which was used to justify the genocide of Native Americans.
The painful historic reference to Native Americans being driven from their land and in many cases killed caused a major uproar, and the fashion retailer eventually pulled the shirt from store shelves, issuing a brief and seemingly reluctant announcement on the matter.
