Online costume retailer Halloween.com is slammed by people for selling an Anne Frank costume for children.
- Oct 17, 2017
AceShowbiz - Several online retailers were slammed for selling Anne Frank Halloween costume. The costume, which includes a beret, dress, a wig and satchel similar to what Frank wore, was originally discovered on Amazon.com in August.
After receiving criticisms from social media users, the e-tail giant removed the item, which it called the "Girls World Evacuee Costume", from its website. But as it's getting closer to Halloween, people noticed a similar costume is sold at other online stores, including eBay and Walmart.
The costume's description read, "World War II shook the world in a way that no one could have foreseen. It showed us what true and mettle were. It also created some unexpected heroes, where even a young girl like Anne Frank with nothing but a diary and hope could become an inspiration to us all."
Totally speechless. Just been shown this ad for an Anne Frank costume for Halloween. @AnneFrankCenter you might want to have a word pic.twitter.com/mu0t4lvY62
— Jude Habib (@JudeHabib) October 15, 2017
A spokesman for the Anne Frank Center dubbed the costume "offensive." The spokesperson Alexandra DeVitt told Fox News, "There are more appropriate ways to commemorate the legacy of Anne Frank than through a Halloween costume, which is offensive and trivializes her suffering and the suffering of millions during the Holocaust. We are pleased that the costume has been pulled."
The popular website Halloween Costumes is selling an Anne Frank costume for kids. WTF? pic.twitter.com/cqKQ9UlIge
— Daniel Arenson (@DanielArenson) October 15, 2017
Fun.com, owner of HalloweenCostumes.com, has since removed the costume from its websites and issued an apology. "We apologize for any offense it has caused, as that’s never our intention," said a spokesperson for the company, which sells costumes for school projects and plays as well as for Halloween.
Seriously, @funcostumes, you market "WWII #AnneFrank Girls Costume" for #Halloween? https://t.co/v3ZfX9YFOJ Sickening.
— Julie Bestry, CPO® (@ProfOrganizer) September 18, 2017
The Halloween Spot sold a similar costume which was called "World War II Evacuee Girl Costume." A representative for the company said, "We apologize for anyone offended by the costume and will be pulling these costumes from our stock."
Meanwhile, Candy Apple Costumes still sells the same outfit. It claims that the daughter of buyers will look "pretty and historically accurate for her school play or project in our girls' World War II Evacuee Girl costume."
