Woolworths criticised for 'If you don't love it leave' Aussie shirt

Woolworths has pulled a singlet urging people to leave Australia if they don’t “love it” with critics calling the clothing 'racist' and divisive'.

tweet_racism.jpg

The offensive singlet, posted online by Cairns customer George Craig. (Image: George Craig)

The image, posted online on Monday by Cairns customer George Craig, showed a men’s singlet emblazoned with the Australian flag and the words “IF YOU DON’T LOVE IT LEAVE”.
Mr Craig told SBS he was shocked when he saw the found the singlet over the weekend.

“We were pretty shocked at both the sentiment and the corporate stupidity,” he said.

A spokesman for Woolworths told SBS the singlets, previously available in two stores, were "totally unacceptable".

"The singlet was not one we ordered," he said.

"It was delivered to us in error and should never been allowed on our shelves. We will review our processes to ensure this sort of error cannot happen again.

"As soon as we were made aware we immediately withdrew the product from our shelves. The sentiment expressed on the singlet does not reflect the views of Woolworths. Woolworths has a policy of 'Doing the Right Thing' which means we believe in fostering an environment where everyone is treated with dignity, courtesy and respect."

The singlet had already attracted criticism online, including a call from Greens MP Adam Bandt to pull the products.

Staffers for Mr Bandt reposted the image online, calling for it to be removed from shelves.

“Divisive and ridiculous,” they posted.

“These should be pulled immediately.”

It follows a similar backlash to a design pulled by Aldi in January.

The offending t-shirt, designed for Australia Day and bearing the words “Australia Established 1788”, was withdrawn from shelves amid racism claims.
Big W also removed products with a similar design in January.


Share
2 min read

Published

Updated

By Stephanie Anderson


Share this with family and friends


Get SBS News daily and direct to your Inbox

Sign up now for the latest news from Australia and around the world direct to your inbox.

By subscribing, you agree to SBS’s terms of service and privacy policy including receiving email updates from SBS.

Download our apps
SBS News
SBS Audio
SBS On Demand

Listen to our podcasts
An overview of the day's top stories from SBS News
Interviews and feature reports from SBS News
Your daily ten minute finance and business news wrap with SBS Finance Editor Ricardo Gonçalves.
A daily five minute news wrap for English learners and people with disability
Get the latest with our News podcasts on your favourite podcast apps.

Watch on SBS
SBS World News

SBS World News

Take a global view with Australia's most comprehensive world news service
Watch the latest news videos from Australia and across the world