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Adidas' Shackle Sneakers: Offensive Reference to Slavery, or Just 'Quirky'?

SodaHead Living 2012/06/19 17:00:00
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Adidas has dropped plans to release a pair of "shackle" sneakers after critics bashed the brand for being insensitive to a painful reminder of slavery, CNN reports. The outrage began on June 14, when Adidas began advertising the $350 high-top sneakers, called JS Roundhouse Mids, on its Facebook page.

adidas shackle sneakers

"Got a sneaker game so hot you lock your kicks to your ankles?" said a caption below a photo of the sneakers. Adidas defended the sneaker's designer, Jeremy Scott, as having a "quirky" and "lighthearted" style, but plans for an August release have been scuttled.

"The design of the JS Roundhouse Mid is nothing more than the designer Jeremy Scott's outrageous and unique take on fashion and has nothing to do with slavery," the company said in a statement. "We apologize if people are offended by the design and we are withdrawing our plans to make them available in the marketplace."

Rev. Jesse Jackson, for one, was offended by the rubber shackles. "The attempt to commercialize and make popular more than 200 years of human degradation, where blacks were considered three-fifths human by our Constitution is offensive, appalling and insensitive," he said in a statement. Do you agree?
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Top Opinion

  • Wulfdane 2012/06/19 19:21:05 (edited)
    Quirky
    Wulfdane
    +25
    Quirky and stupid, but not offensive.

    This attributing everything to slavery, is even more ignorant than those shoes.

    We have become a nation of self-victimization, where everyone wants to be a victim.

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Opinions

  • james.v... Incognito 2012/06/20 17:25:58
    james.v.daele
    Stop chem-trails?! um... ever been flying up in the air when the pressure and dew-point are right? the wingtips produce turbulence that causes cloud nucleation, which spreads out... those are the chem-trails you are seeing, and when you want people to stop chem-trails you are just demonstrating profound ignorance and also denigrating any other argument you make by association with it.
  • Incognito james.v... 2012/06/20 18:45:22
  • MeganDew 2012/06/20 16:56:19
    Offensive
    MeganDew
    +1
    I would say they are, what African American athlete would want to wear those?
    Not to mention that they seem incredibly impractical.
  • GiuliettaTomolei 2012/06/20 16:51:49
    Quirky
    GiuliettaTomolei
    +1
    They're more ugly than they are quirky or offensive...
  • ALofRI 2012/06/20 16:48:32
    Offensive
    ALofRI
    +2
    They should have held them back to see if Romney won the election...then they could have marketed them as "Practice Crossovers"!
  • Natâ„¢ 2012/06/20 16:42:24
  • Incognito Natâ„¢ 2012/06/20 17:16:11
    Incognito
    A woman trapped in a bad marriage. At least it would make her domestic slave duties easier than if she were to have the traditional ball and chain model.
    http://failedmessiah.typepad....
  • MartiniJean 2012/06/20 16:41:36
    Quirky
    MartiniJean
    +2
    Not offensive, but very, very ugly.
  • miz may 2012/06/20 16:37:11
    Quirky
    miz may
    +1
    They're just ugly.
  • JD1980 2012/06/20 16:30:27
    Quirky
    JD1980
    +2
    They would go good with the baggy ass pants...since they can't run in THOSE either, HaHa!!! Maybey that would keep us all from seeing so many shoes on the side of the road!
  • Incognito JD1980 2012/06/20 17:25:13
  • JD1980 Incognito 2012/06/27 18:33:52
    JD1980
    +1
    ...and there ya go, HaHa!!!
  • silverhorn 2012/06/20 16:26:19
    Quirky
    silverhorn
    +1
    Just plain ugly.
  • johnpar 2012/06/20 16:22:44
    Quirky
    johnpar
    +2
    Shackle Sneakers are a reference to slavery? The Democrats created a new plantation in 1965 with their "Great Society" welfare programs. Now people are enslaved by their federal welfare masters - and none seem to notice. But the symbol of Shackle Sneakers causes alarm and offense? That's too funny for words!
  • BOOTSXI 2012/06/20 16:21:49
    Quirky
    BOOTSXI
    +5
    THE BLACK HOODLUMS WEAR TONS OF CHAINS AROUND THEIR NECKS AND THE REV. JACKSON NEVER THOUGHT THAT WAS OFFENDSIVE.
  • pretty ... BOOTSXI 2012/06/20 16:57:48
    pretty tony
    +1
    And people like you wonder why people get offended.

    Would you be offended if we built a mosque next to the World trade Center. Is it OK to put indians on jerseys. What offends sombody offends them. Its not about you. I get it let wear those Nazi Swastikas on our sneakers and see howe the Jewish community like it.
  • The Pro 2012/06/20 16:21:41
    Quirky
    The Pro
    +1
    Not necessarily offensive however I question what marketing research was done for these. Obviously it gave Jackson something to talk about.
  • Mtnsmith 2012/06/20 16:20:30
    Quirky
    Mtnsmith
    +3
    Quirky and hideous, but more convicted felon or house-arrest kind of vibe than slavery...
  • Incognito Mtnsmith 2012/06/20 17:40:21
  • jay 2012/06/20 16:18:52
    Quirky
    jay
    +1
    People are going to wear what they want regardless of what people say about the style
  • ..::localeye::.. 2012/06/20 16:17:41
    Quirky
    ..::localeye::..
    +1
    The are ugly shoes...that's about it.
  • ashhhh 2012/06/20 16:16:03
  • Kiki 2012/06/20 16:12:09
    Quirky
    Kiki
    +8
    I was never a slave so I do not even go there! As proud as I am as black woman, I refuse to allow ignorance make me feel any different. Besides...these sneakers are too ugly to even be offensive!
  • Cravinsome 2012/06/20 16:10:50
    Quirky
    Cravinsome
    +7
    Should have gotten Shaq to be their spokesperson and called them "Shaq-kles." You're slippin' Adidas..
  • Kiki Cravinsome 2012/06/20 16:12:46
    Kiki
    +1
    LMMFAO!!!!!!!!!
  • king79 2012/06/20 16:09:48 (edited)
    Quirky
    king79
    +1
    I think they are kinda cool looking but perhaps orange isnt the best color to use for them. Now if they actually locked to your leg it might stop that string of sneaker thefts lol that was a bad attempt at humor.
  • John T. 2012/06/20 16:08:32
    Offensive
    John T.
    +1
    They would look good with the jailhouse pence draggers. Who else would wear them?
  • AdWhois 2012/06/20 16:08:29
    Quirky
    AdWhois
    +3
    Slavery didn't cross my mind at all. I thought of a convict picking up garbage on the side of the road... Must have been where these sneakers were found. Ugly ugly.
  • wisecracker 2012/06/20 16:07:38
    Quirky
    wisecracker
    +1
    kind of cute.....
  • Maj. C. D. Hardy 2012/06/20 16:06:36
    Quirky
    Maj. C. D. Hardy
    +1
    I think they are more weird than offensive.
  • Jake Shion 2012/06/20 16:03:11
    Quirky
    Jake Shion
    +1
    Offensive!? naw just think of the cosplays you could make with these!1
  • screamingsloth 2012/06/20 16:02:18
    Quirky
    screamingsloth
    +1
    Wah wah wah. People need to grow up and quit looking for stuff to be in an uproar about. They are freaking shoes, for crying out loud.
  • Jacqui 2012/06/20 15:59:30
    Quirky
    Jacqui
    +3
    With everything else that is wrong in this world why get upset over sneakers!
  • bluelady 2012/06/20 15:58:44
    Offensive
    bluelady
    +5
    not because of any implied slavery thing...offensive d/t just UGLY sneakers
  • David Torres 2012/06/20 15:57:57
    Offensive
    David Torres
    +1
    To be honest with you, i just like those sneakers at all. Besieds, i don't even want to buy or wear them at all.
  • stevegtexas@aol.com 2012/06/20 15:57:41
    Quirky
    stevegtexas@aol.com
    +1
    have you seen the Obama nikes? Obama nikes Obama nikes Obama nikes
  • stevegt... stevegt... 2012/06/20 16:03:44
  • JessicaLynn 2012/06/20 15:54:43
    Quirky
    JessicaLynn
    +2
    This is the most ridiculous thing I ever heard. They are just shoes! And I would wear them. They are cute.
  • AprilSkelton 2012/06/20 15:52:29
    Offensive
    AprilSkelton
    +2
    I don't think this has anything to do with slavery. For the most part, slaves were not shackled. However, this might appeal to the gang members who think it's cool to mock the laws and society in general. I still find them offensive unless you want to buy a pair for your out of control teenager to wear.
  • Jessica... AprilSk... 2012/06/20 15:57:29
    JessicaLynn
    It is velcro! It is not like they are actually locked around the ankle. I am no where near being a gang member and I would wear them. Just as long as they change the colors.

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2013/06/19 00:01:54

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