kong
03-14-2012, 06:12 PM
Nike ‘Black and Tans’ Sneaker Accidentally Incites Outrage From Irish Community
The name of a new Nike sneaker has people upset in Ireland. The footwear giant accidentally insulted the Irish while trying to honor the country leading up to St. Patrick's Day.
The Nike SB Black and Tan Quickstrike is named after a black and tan colored alcoholic beverage made by mixing stout and lager--usually Guinness and Harp or Bass--in a pint glass. Even though Guinness and Harp are Irish, it is not a drink that is commonly requested in bars in Ireland. In the 1920s, a British paramilitary group, known as the "Black & Tans," used brutality to suppress an armed Irish Revolution, and it was known for its ruthless attacks against Irish civilians.
The president of the Irish Lobby for Immigration Reform, Ciaran Staunton, said the name of the shoe "would be the American equivalent of calling a sneaker 'the Al Qaeda.'" Staunton added, "Is there no one at Nike able to Google Black and Tan?"
Nike issued an apology for inadvertently upsetting people in Ireland, saying "no offense was intended." Nike officials also told FoxNews.com that the official name of the sneakers is 'Nike SB Dunk Low' and that the shoes were "unofficially named by some using a phrase that can be viewed as inappropriate and insensitive."
Many people on social media are echoing Staunton, saying that Nike should have simply put the name "black and tan" in an Internet search engine to figure out the sinister connotation behind it. Even Atlanta news anchor Mark Hayes tweeted that "Nike put its foot in its mouth and now they are scrambling to do some damage control!"
The name of a new Nike sneaker has people upset in Ireland. The footwear giant accidentally insulted the Irish while trying to honor the country leading up to St. Patrick's Day.
The Nike SB Black and Tan Quickstrike is named after a black and tan colored alcoholic beverage made by mixing stout and lager--usually Guinness and Harp or Bass--in a pint glass. Even though Guinness and Harp are Irish, it is not a drink that is commonly requested in bars in Ireland. In the 1920s, a British paramilitary group, known as the "Black & Tans," used brutality to suppress an armed Irish Revolution, and it was known for its ruthless attacks against Irish civilians.
The president of the Irish Lobby for Immigration Reform, Ciaran Staunton, said the name of the shoe "would be the American equivalent of calling a sneaker 'the Al Qaeda.'" Staunton added, "Is there no one at Nike able to Google Black and Tan?"
Nike issued an apology for inadvertently upsetting people in Ireland, saying "no offense was intended." Nike officials also told FoxNews.com that the official name of the sneakers is 'Nike SB Dunk Low' and that the shoes were "unofficially named by some using a phrase that can be viewed as inappropriate and insensitive."
Many people on social media are echoing Staunton, saying that Nike should have simply put the name "black and tan" in an Internet search engine to figure out the sinister connotation behind it. Even Atlanta news anchor Mark Hayes tweeted that "Nike put its foot in its mouth and now they are scrambling to do some damage control!"