Walmart apologises for Christmas jumper 'showing Santa doing cocaine'
'We apologise for any unintended offence this may have caused,' spokesperson for retailer says
by Sabrina BarrWalmart Canada has issued an apology for selling a jumper on its site that appears to show Santa Claus doing cocaine.
The item of clothing shows Saint Nicholas sitting behind a table with three lines of a white substance in front of him, captioned with the slogan: “Let it snow.”
The product’s description on the Walmart Canada website stated: “We all know how snow works. It’s white, powdery and the best snow comes straight from South America. That’s bad news for jolly old St Nick, who lives far away in the North Pole.
“That’s why Santa really likes to savour the moment when he get his hands on some quality, grade A, Colombian snow.”
A spokesperson for Walmart has apologised for the sale of the product, adding that it has been removed from the company’s Canadian website.
“These sweaters, sold by a third-party seller on Walmart.ca, do not represent Walmart’s values and have no place on our website,” the spokesperson told Global News.
“We have removed these products from our marketplace. We apologise for any unintended offence this may have caused.”
The jumper was produced by clothing retailer Fun Wear.
Other items created by Fun Wear that are still available to purchase on Walmart’s Canadian site include a jumper depicting a mugshot of Santa Claus, a sweatshirt featuring an illustration of Santa engaged in a fight with a bear and a Chanukah sweatshirt designed with a menorah and captioned with the slogan: “Lit.”
Other items of clothing, including a sweatshirt that showed Father Christmas standing in front of a fireplace without his trousers on, have been removed from the Walmart Canada website.
A range of Christmas cards featuring the Virgin Mary, Joseph and baby Jesus recently sparked anger among members of the Christian community, who described them as “deeply offensive”.
One of the cards includes the caption: “Mary just needs to admit she slept with someone else.”
“It highlights a fundamental hypocrisy that Christianity is seen as fair game to mock, disparage and insult,” said James Mildred, communication manager of Christian Action Research and Education (CARE).
The Independent has contacted Walmart for comment.