Under Armour has received public backlash for appropriating the imagery of American soldiers raising the flag at Iwo Jima onto a t-shirt. The shirt is titled ‘Band of Ballers,’ which is a play off the HBO show Band of Brothers, and features a recreation of the iconic flag raising by Marines at Iwo Jima.
Since the reaction, Under Armour has taken the shirts off their website and issued a public apology through Twitter:
Metaphors are often exchanged back and forth between war and sports, but appropriating iconic imagery is a line that sports organizations shouldn’t cross.
(Via Deadspin)