Amazon has removed merchandise sold by third parties with a vulgar anti-Joe Biden and Kamala Harris slogan, and says it may take action against sellers listing them.
Twitter users on Tuesday started pointing attention to shirts with various versions of the phrase “Joe and the Ho,” referring to the Democratic nominees for President and Vice President, former Vice President Biden and US Senator Harris.
Several such shirts were still listed on the site Wednesday morning, but links to the products are no longer active. As of around 12:30 p.m. ET on Wednesday, an Amazon spokesperson said the products had all been removed for violating selling guidelines.
“All sellers must follow our selling guidelines and those who do not will be subject to action including potential removal of their account,” the spokesperson said in a statement. “These products have been removed.”
In addition to selling its own products on its website, Amazon also acts as a marketplace where third party, independent sellers can list items for sale.
Demetria Edwards, an Arkansas attorney, on Tuesday sent an email to Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos asking for the removal of the products. Edwards, who shared that email with CNN Business, called the items “racist, sexist and offensive merchandise,” and a “reprehensible attempt to demean, devalue, denigrate and degrade” Biden and Harris. Edwards said she did not receive a direct response from Amazon, and it’s not clear whether Edwards’ letter led to the products’ removal.
It’s not the first time Amazon has had to remove inappropriate products. Earlier this month, Amazon removed shoes for sale by a third party seller that featured a racial slur from its website after being called out by a British lawmaker. And in March, Amazon said it had pulled more than 1 million products off its site for price gouging or false advertising during the pandemic.