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discernment wrote:
Did you hear that Target is oulling a line of clothing because it has the number 88 printed on them. Apparently, 88 is shothand among white supremists for Heil Hitler because the letter "H" is the 8th letter of the alphabet. the Jewish Defamation League briught this to Targets attention from what i understand so Target is pulling the clothes line and offereing people a refund or replacement for the clothes that they sold from this line.

True Story.

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Target told '88' is neo-Nazi symbol BY JIM MCCARTNEY St. Paul Pioneer Press

Before school starts next week, parents may want to check to see if that cap or shorts their kids bought at Target this summer is sporting neo-Nazi symbols.

The red-and-black apparel has skulls and the numbers "eight-eight" written out and in numerical form. To most, it may look like the latest in "edgy" teen ware; but within the White Power subculture, "88" is slang for "Heil Hitler." The eight refers to H, the eighth letter of the alphabet — put the two together, and you have shorthand for the Nazi salute.

The Minneapolis-based retailer said it's pulling the merchandise off the shelves of its 1,100 stores nationwide. It issued a statement Tuesday apologizing for the apparel. On Wednesday, store officials added that the chain will give refunds to customers who've bought the merchandise.

"Target apologizes for any discomfort that may have been caused by baseball caps and shorts carrying the insignia 88," the company statement said. "Target is a family-oriented store and company and it is not our intent to carry any merchandise that promotes hate."

Target said it decided to pull the merchandise "as soon as the appropriate people were notified at Target Corp."

But a California customer named Joseph Rodriguez said he first told the retailer about the hate symbols nearly three months ago, and has repeatedly contacted employees at Target stores in California and at the retailer's corporate headquarters.

"I had just one response off of an e-mail I sent them," Rodriguez said. "I have yet to hear anything from them."

What's the harm in selling such merchandise?

"As the symbols creep into the mainstream youth, not far behind are the ideas that are attached," said Mark Potok, a spokesman for the Southern Poverty Law Center, an organization based in Montgomery, Ala., that fights racism.

Also, a lot of kids out there may be cluelessly endorsing neo-Nazi symbols and may end up getting some adverse reactions, Potok said.

Experts on retail branding and on racism said Target did the right thing in pulling the items and offering refunds.

But given the media attention the story is getting — Rodriguez did interviews Wednesday with five California TV stations, several newspapers and National Public Radio — they may have to do more.

Especially since it appears to be merchandise Target created on its own.

The apparel line was produced by Utility, a Target private label, Target spokeswoman Carolyn Brookter told the Sacramento Bee this week. She said Target officials were looking into how the design was created.

"Whoops," said Don Stuart, a retail brand consultant in Wilton, Conn. The fallout "will depend on how quickly and effectively Target responds to the problem," he said.

Clearly they will have to do more on the public relations end, Stuart said when told that Target would not comment beyond its short statement Wednesday.

At a minimum, the retailer will need to be far more vigorous in screening the merchandise it sells, said George Rosenbaum, a Chicago-based retail consultant. The design probably came out of Target's desire to cultivate a "trendy" image and appeal to youth. Whoever saw the symbols most likely had no idea what they meant, Rosenbaum speculated.

"They carefully screen all the ads they run, but they're not as careful about what they put in their stores," he said. "I think it raises the broader question of: To what extent should retailers feel free to market and respond to the youth culture, and to what extent must they show some social responsibility?"

Target's decision to yank the offending apparel came after the Southern Poverty Law Center posted a story Monday on its Web site about Rodriguez's frustration in dealing with the retailer.

Rodriguez, a video producer and director at the University of California-Davis, said he walked into a Target store in Elk Grove, Calif., on May 31 and saw the apparel. He recognized the symbols because he had recently seen a documentary on racist rock music.

But to make sure, he did an Internet search for "white power 88" and came up with a slew of neo-Nazi and "white power" Web sites, as well as sites opposed to that movement, such as the Anti-Defamation League. (A search for those terms on the Internet search engine Google brought up about 808,000 hits.)

He said he informed the Elk Grove store manager about the symbols but was told that the store simply sells what it is sent to sell. At a store in Sacramento, the manager immediately pulled the merchandise. But Rodri-guez's attempts to reach Target headquarters through the retailer's guest relations department produced what appeared to be a form letter, he said.

"We recognize that not all of our guests will agree with our decision to sell certain kinds of merchandise," wrote a Tar-get "guest relations" employee identified only as Eileen. "However, we feel the final decision to purchase an item is always in the hands of individual guests."

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phamton wrote:

I try to tone it down on other message boards but it does tend to make me annoying.

Bev

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phamton wrote:
Thanks, Janie. My friends and other email buddies find me a little "know it all." They hate the fact that I just have to debunk all their exciting stories.

I try to tone it down on other message boards but it does tend to make me annoying.

Bev

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he did an Internet search for "white power 88" and came up with a slew of neo-Nazi and "white power" Web sites, as well as sites opposed to that movement, such as the Anti-Defamation League. (A search for those terms on the Internet search engine Google brought up about 808,000 hits.)

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discernment wrote:
Did you hear that Target is oulling a line of clothing because it has the number 88 printed on them. Apparently, 88 is shothand among white supremists for Heil Hitler because the letter "H" is the 8th letter of the alphabet. the Jewish Defamation League briught this to Targets attention from what i understand so Target is pulling the clothes line and offereing people a refund or replacement for the clothes that they sold from this line.

True Story.

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