(CNN)Amazon has removed a post selling shoes described as “n***er brown” after a British lawmaker discovered the listing while shopping online, prompting calls for tighter controls on Amazon’s item descriptions.
“Just buying brown brogues tonight leads to this racist micro aggression. Is it 2020 or 1720? Please @amazon take it down,” wrote David Lammy on Monday, alongside a picture of the item description.Almost 90 minutes later, Lammy tweeted again, thanking Amazon for removing the product. But he added: “Given the item has been on sale since March what systems do you have in place for reviewing descriptions and not allowing offensive terms to be posted in the first place? This is not the first time.”
Amazon has since removed the listing. CNN has partially blurred this image.An Amazon spokesperson told CNN that the product is no longer available.”All sellers must follow our selling guidelines and those who do not will be subject to action including potential removal of their account,” said the spokesperson in a statement.Read MoreAmazon has previously acted to remove offensive items from its marketplace.In January 2019, Amazon pulled more than a dozen products after receiving complaints that the items were offensive to Muslims. And in December, the company removed a number of Christmas ornaments featuring images of the Auschwitz concentration camp.Lammy is a member of parliament for the Labour party and an outspoken campaigner on racial inequality.Earlier on Monday, he also tweeted about racist abuse he had received on Twitter, urging the social media giant to be “faster” at “removing hate.”London’s Metropolitan Police replied to Lammy’s tweet, inviting him to contact them to discuss the post.Lammy’s call was echoed by Priti Patel, UK Home Secretary and Conservative MP, who replied to him calling out the “awful racist abuse” he had faced. “As I have said before, @Twitter must take decisive action against this sort of vile content much faster,” wrote Patel.
A Twitter spokesperson told CNN that there is no place for racist behavior on the service.”We have policies in place that address abuse and harassment, violent threats, and hateful conduct,” said the spokesperson in a statement. “If we identify accounts that violate any of these rules, we’ll take enforcement action. This account in question has been suspended for violating our Hateful Conduct policy.”
Source: edition.cnn.com