Bed, Bath and Beyond Has Pulled “Blackface” Pumpkins From the Shelves

Bed, Bath & Beyond has pulled black jack-o-lantern pumpkins from their shelves after a Nyack community complained publicly about the pumpkins. The jack-o-lanterns, which are black and feature white paint for the grin, nose, and eyes, were placed out in front of a Nyack law firm Feerick, Nugent, and MacCartney. Within 48 hours, the law firm had gotten enough complaints about the pumpkins that they took the display down — but the firm also raised the question as to how the pumpkins got to Bed Bath & Beyond shelves in the first place.

When a local news crew investigated the incident, the law firm said that their intention was to never offend or exclude anyone — so as soon as they got complaints, they took down the display. Local NAACP Director Wilbur Aldridge said the pumpkins being displayed depicted an “extreme lack of sensitivity.”

Meanwhile, Bed, Bath & Beyond apologized for the fact that the pumpkins were on sale in the first place — and immediately removed the pumpkins from all store locations. This is not the first time that a company has been criticized for selling products that have a likeness to the racist image recently. Last year, Gucci and Adidas dropped products that had a striking resemblance to the image, and just this year, Prada got in hot water for a fictional animal that depicts blackface, and Katy Perry Collections pulled a shoe that depicted the same image. Clearly, major companies have a long way to go when it comes to making sure their designs are, well, not racist.