Victimized? Yes, Actually

Haaretz reports that the Urban Outfitters clothing chain has pulled this apparently pro-violence tee-shirt from their shelves:

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Above the word “Victimized,” it depicts several Palestinian boys, armed with AK-47s. It also features the Palestinian flag, a map of Gaza and the West Bank, and, somewhat incongruously, a dove.

The shirt is produced by a company called Fresh Jive. The company’s owner responds, charmingly, to the controversy over the shirt here. He says that he “stand[s] behind my opinion of Palestinian victimization,” but adds that “there are victims on all sides of this conflict.” Of course, only one side gets a tee-shirt.

One could, perhaps, read the shirt differently. I think it is true that Palestinian children are “victimized,” not by Israel, but by their own parents and by Palestinian leaders who bring them up to hate; arm them with automatic weapons rather than education; make it impossible for them to live normal lives; and deprive them of any meaningful economic future. Maybe someone could make a tee-shirt about that.

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