The owner of the HatWRKS hat shop in Nashville is under fire after making a horrifically bad call when it came to the store's inventory. The owner, who has made many questionable decisions outlined in the store's social media profiles, began selling "Unvaccinated" badges that resemble the Star of David.
The Star of David looks like two equilateral triangles laid over each other. It's an important symbol of Jewish identity. However, the badges were meant to symbolize the yellow stars that Jewish individuals were forced to wear during the Holocaust. Those badges identified their culture and religion — and made them easier to spot and punish. Countless European Jews were killed after being forced into concentration camps.
Thus the outrage is very serious — and the act itself is very disturbing.
The shop, which is located on 8th Ave S. in Nashville, has since removed the social media post that showcased the badges — but people were quick to take screenshots to prove that the store did sell such items. The picture featured the owner of the store showcasing her own badge. She mentioned that the badges were "great" and also had a "strong adhesive back."
The owner seemed so pleased by the design that she said that trucker hats with the "Unvaccinated" star would be featured in the store next. The shop deleted the post after followers openly stated how repulsive the item was, but the owner still didn't seem convinced. Instead of understanding why vaccinations shouldn't be equated to an ugly moment in history that included mass genocide, she buckled down and said that people should be upset over the "tyranny the world is experiencing."
That statement alone seemed to undermine how serious the Holocaust was. Not only did the Nazis attack the Jewish population, but they also went after the European Romas and those who identified as homosexual. Families were separated, and those trapped in the camps were given numbers as a new form of identity. Yet an owner of a disgraced hat shop feels like the vaccine is, in some way, the equivalent of that.
The HatWRKS social media page is filled mostly with propaganda and little information regarding the store itself. Since the photo went viral, several hat companies are making sure that their products aren't sold at HatWRKS, including Stetson. People are also protesting the store in person.
Based on the reaction, the owner — Gigi — knew that she had to respond. So she issued an apology. However, it's not the strongest. It seems as if she still doesn't understand the gravity of the comparison she made, and still fails to reconsider her viewpoint. "If you don't understand what's happening, that's on you, not me," she wrote.
"I pay much more respect to history by standing up with the fallen than offering silence and compliance," she added. "That is the worse crime. It was then and now. I will delete your disgust and hope you put it where it belongs."
She continued, mentioning how everyone needs to show their "papers" to continue living. But what she fails to realize is that many children aren't even eligible for the vaccine just yet — and for most public schools, vaccines are required. "This has been the push, that is not fiction," she wrote. "Much of this is happening right now. There is a historical parallel to fascism to be drawn. We can only fight back not to relive history."
Her apology to the Jewish population — and everyone else who might have lost a relative and a loved one during the Holocaust — was lackluster. "In NO WAY did I intend to trivialize the Star of David or disrespect what happened to millions of people," she wrote. "That is not who I am and what I stand for. My intent was not to exploit or make a profit." However, that's exactly what the move seemed to do.
This wasn't one mistake. She's even rented billboards to promote her anti-vax agenda. In a situation like this, it's important to trust scientists. Ever since the virus became such a threat, they've worked tirelessly to find a solution that works. If you want to compare the world today to history from the past, a better solution may have been comparing it to the 1900s, when people were worried about polio.
In 1953, Jonas Salk injected his entire family with a polio vaccine that he invented. He had enough trust in his creation to use it on his own family. Just a year later, that same vaccine was used in 1.3 million children who participated in the vaccine trial. Soon after, the polio vaccine was available to all. That seems to be a closer historical match.
"So people know, my post was up for 2-3 hrs, and no merchandise was ever sold," she said in an additional post. "Many people have emailed, but I will not be selling or giving them away." Still, it seems as if she didn't realize the weight of this decision before going public. The products are offensive, and many Holocaust survivors — and their family members, sickened by the story of the Holocaust — still remain today.
While it's upsetting for this to happen, it's important for people to know where business owners like Gigi stand. Even if her viewpoints may be questionable, it's an act of disrespect to have created such an offensive product. She has since blocked comments on Instagram, but it looks like the protests against her shop are far from over.
