Victory! Etsy Removes Rape Congratulations Cards

Ladies and gentleman, we have a victory! Just under two months after I began covering the controversial rape congratulations card for sale online at Etsy, the card (as well as the ones mocking breast cancer and Down Syndrome) has finally been removed. Moreover, Etsy has changed its items policy, ensuring that similar products do not pop up on the site in the future.

This was not an easy victory. Since we first started our coverage of the cards in December, nearly 17,000 Change.org members signed the petition asking for the cards' removal. After all, Etsy own terms of use state that it does not allow items that harass others or that are deemed obscene. When we contacted Etsy about the story and the ensuing outcry, they responded, "Different people may find some content to be offensive, harmful, inaccurate or deceptive." Yet this commitment to diverse voices rang false when Etsy forbade discussion of the issue on its message boards and Facebook wall.

Change.org members, Etsy users, and concerned people everywhere were not deterred. As the petition gained momentum, so did the story. All over the internet, blogs were buzzing about it. CNN's Jane Velez-Mitchell covered the story on her show. Change.org members inspired me with their grassroots boycotts and letter-writing campaigns.

Finally, all of our efforts have paid off: Etsy has announced revisions to its policies. Etsy released a statement saying that, while their site had "prohibited disparaging or promoting hate against people based on race or religion," but these policies had "never covered gender, people with disabilities, or sexual orientation." Now, to their credit, they do.

Some argue that this is a First Amendment issue and I won't say otherwise. Etsy is a private company that has the right of free association, and thus the right to regulate its content. No one is saying that people don't have the right to make the most obscene, hateful card they can think of. But certainly we don't have the right to force private companies to sell, market, or facilitate our personal hate speech. We asked Etsy to take a hard look at what kind of company they wanted to be and they responded. Congratulations, Change.org members!

Photo credit: Charles & Hudson

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