On December 4th, Cheryl Shapiro of Northridge, California was shopping at a Walgreens store when she happened upon some Hanukkah wrapping paper that appeared to have multiple swastikas in its design. Needless to say, she was not pleased. From NBC LA:
“I couldn’t believe my eyes, I had no idea what to do,” she said. “I told them I wanted this taken off the shelves immediately – not just your store, but national,” Shapiro said. “I was really putting my foot down because I was appalled by this.”
Hallmark became aware of the complaint and assisted the drug store chain in removing the offensive wrapping paper from stores nationwide. The company stated the blue and silver gift wrap was not intended to be Hanukkah-themed as the design was modeled after a pattern featured on a Chinese vase. Some Eastern cultures used the symbol for luck and prosperity before the Nazis co-opted it for their own evil doing.
Hey Hallmark, here’s a tip: if you’re not intending an item to be used during the Festival Of Lights, try using a different color scheme! Leaving out any swastika-like symbols couldn’t hurt, either.
(Source: Fox 10 Phoenix/ NBC LA/ The Daily Dot)