Interlude: Completely Inappropriate T-Shirt Slogans

Published April 14, 2009 @ 06:18PM PT

A break from our somewhat more serious, standard fare, to probe a question too-long ignored.

As Save Darfur has shown, it is possible to market mass atrocities on everything from t-shirts to beanies, albeit for a worthy cause. Even operational NGOs sell branded merchandise. (CAREWear, anyone?)

Wearing a t-shirt proclaiming that you are, in fact, against genocide is well and good, but hardly separates one from the masses.

All of which recently got me thinking - what would be the most inappropriate humanitarian t-short slogan? The one above is amusing, but not inappropriate per se. At least not compared to:

"Someone in the Janjaweed Loves Me" or

"Graduate of the Joseph Kony School for Boys" / "the Mullah Omar School for Girls"

Our friends at Wronging Rights suggested a t-shirt with only one armhole, and the slogan "I was victimized by the RUF - Ask me how"

My genocide co-blogger Michelle suggested a slightly more tasteful and topical t-shirt: "I (Heart) Omar Bashir" on the front, and then on the back "Because no war criminal should have to fight neo-colonialism alone"

If you have any suggestions, please let me know.

[T-shirt above from BustedTees - many thanks to Michelle for the link.]

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Comments (12)

What about "I Heart the LRA"???
Oh wait...

Posted by Emily Roberts on 04/14/2009 @ 06:29PM PT
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It's not so offensive but I always liked the tee shirts that said Hawadi or Muzungu. And I once bought a tee shirt that had a camel on it and the word Sudan! at the "gift shop" in the Acropole hotel.

Posted by Sarah Martin on 04/14/2009 @ 10:36PM PT
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I personally would be tempted to buy a Muzungu! t-shirt; or, better, "Muzungus Have All The Answers". Irony, it's all about irony

Posted by Michael Bear on 04/15/2009 @ 01:00AM PT
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Inspired by the outline of South America in the above Save Darfur picture, why not something along the lines of (front) Join FARC! (back) And be a part of jungle fever.

Of course, I always think back to a ex-colleague of mine in Kabul who wanted a T-shirt with "Pashtun girls are easy" printed on it...

Posted by Brandy Bauer on 04/15/2009 @ 02:34AM PT
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I think the "Pashtun Girls Are Easy" might be the winner

Posted by Michael Bear on 04/15/2009 @ 07:17AM PT
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WIN

Posted by Transitionl... . on 04/15/2009 @ 09:01AM PT
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"I abducted myself to save the abducted and all I got was this lousy tee-shirt"?

Posted by R. U. on 04/15/2009 @ 04:58AM PT
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Brilliant

Posted by Michael Bear on 04/15/2009 @ 07:16AM PT
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Any of the above in child sizes would be awesomely inappropriate.

But no need for pretend offensive t-shirts.
Check these out:
http://www.fightersandlovers.org/spip.php?article10

Stylish FARC and PLFP t-shirts. Don't worry, though. The proceeds all go to help the armed groups they're advertising.

Posted by Charles London on 04/15/2009 @ 02:35PM PT
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I am, for once, speechless

Posted by Michael Bear on 04/15/2009 @ 03:04PM PT
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The makers of these T-shirts were recently sentenced to jail for supporting terrorism by the Danish High Court. Although jail in DK equals something like 2-6 months; we wouldn't want to inconvenience anyone. But it just goes to show you that even in Denmark, you can take free speech a little too far...

Posted by Brandy Bauer on 04/15/2009 @ 11:50PM PT
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i love these shirts. Some of them are witty. And many people these day dont think. So it's a way to access the mind

Posted by Felicity Bramble on 04/20/2009 @ 02:20AM PT
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Michael has worked for NGOs in Afghanistan, across east and central Africa, and Iraq. Prior to going overseas, he worked on a project providing assistance to the United Nations on the application of International Humanitarian Law to the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict.