NEW YORK: Urban Outfitters (UO), a publicly traded retail company headquartered in Philadelphia (USA) offering a variety of lifestyle merchandise, has removed Hindu goddess Jewelry Stand from its website within about 12 hours after strong protests from offended members of Indian American community calling it offensive.
Lotus Jewelry Stand depicting multi-armed Hindu goddess Lakshmi seated on a lotus, an “Online Exclusive” item which was described as “Perfect for holding all of your rings + things,” did not show up after search on UO website within about 12 hours of the protest.
Rajan Zed, President of Universal Society of Hinduism, spearheaded the protest. Observing that the Hindu goddess Jewelry Stand was very inappropriate and trivializing of highly revered Hindu deity.
Zed however indicated that an official apology from UO and its CEO Richard A. Hayne to the upset the community was still due as it was their third incident trivializing a Hindu deity. Urban Outfitters apologized to Hindus and removed Lord Ganesh socks from stores and web after protest in December 2013. It removed Lord Ganesha Duvet Cover from its website after another protest in July 2014.
Zed suggested UO and other corporations worldwide to send their senior executives for training in religious and cultural sensitivity so that they had an understanding of the feelings of customers and communities when creating new products or launching advertising campaigns.
Trivialization of Hindu goddess was disturbing to the Hindus world over. Hindus were for free artistic expression and speech as much as anybody else if not more. But faith was something sacred and attempts at trivializing it hurt the followers, Zed noted.
This imported ceramic white colored Jewelry Stand priced at $69, which Hindu devotees were finding objectionable, was elaborated as: “Enlightened white ceramic storage solution shaped like Durga in a blooming lotus flower.” Actually it was multi-armed goddess Lakshmi seated on a lotus.
In Hinduism, Lakshmi is the goddess of good fortune and beauty and is also known as ‘world-mother’.
India Post News Service
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