A t-shirt promoting the hit show "The Walking Dead" has been pulled after complaints of racism.
Primark had been selling a t-shirt featuring the barb-wire laced bat used by chief bad guy Negan with the phrase "Eeny, Meeny, Miny, Moe."
The phrase references Negan's method of choosing which character he would kill in a gruesome twist in the last episode of the show's sixth season.
Petition launched to return “racist” Walking Dead t-shirt to #Primark stores after complaint sparks ban.https://t.co/YqVtkERHQr pic.twitter.com/tuvIpUvIyF
— Warwick Courier (@Warwick_Courier) February 22, 2017
The phrase is part of an old rhyme that has several versions. In the show, the line is followed by "catch a tiger by its toe," but other historical versions of the rhyme uses a racial slur to replace "tiger."
The Star in Sheffield, England reported customer Ian Lucraft complained about the shirt and told The Star that he and his wife were shocked by the shirt.
Primark issued the following statement, according to the Huffington Post and no longer sells the shirt.
"The T-shirt in question is licensed merchandise for the US television series, “The Walking Dead,” and the quote and image are taken directly from the show. Any offence caused by its design was wholly unintentional and Primark sincerely apologises for this."
