Bath And Body Works got into unwanted controversy after its ‘Snowed In Candle’ was deemed by customers to resemble the hood worn by the Ku Klux Klan community or the KKK. Bath And Body Works has expressed regret and instructed its employees to remove the offensive ‘Snowed In’ Candle from the shelves.
The controversy erupted when a Reddit user posted an image of the candle and compared it with the KKK hood and its robes. The image of the packaging was made to look like a snowflake cut out of paper, with the outer edges of the snowflake in white colour and cone-shaped, with two holes cut out near the centre.
The post was captioned,
“I know it’s one of those paper snowflakes, but I can’t be the only one who sees ‘it,’ right….RIGHT??”
This was soon picked up by other netizens, and as the outrage spread, the American retail store chain removed the product from its website and physical stores. The thread attracted more than 300 responses, with many agreeing to the sentiments expressed by the original post.
‘Snowed In’ Candle or “Klan Krismas Kandle.”
Netizens also started labelling the ‘Snowed In’ Candle as “klandle” or “Klan Krismas Kandle.”
Another influencer on Instagram who is herself a ‘candle buff’ shared her disapproval. However, there were differing voices also, and one user stated that it is just a “school snowflake cutout,” and the associated controversy was unwarranted.
The company in a statement said,
“At Bath & Body Works, we are committed to listening to our teams and customers, and committed to fixing any mistakes we make – even those that are unintentional like this one. We are swiftly working to have this item removed.”
The KKK or the Ku Klux Klan is one of the oldest white supremacist groups and came into existence immediately after the Civil War in 1865. The group was initially composed of mostly former Confederate veterans but soon evolved into one of the most violent hate groups which believed in white supremacy and opposed the civil rights of African Americans.
The candle was also seen on eBay with one seller listing its price as $250. It is a known policy of eBay not to sell wares with listings that include racist terms or language. However, the candle is still available since it does not use racist language.
Not the First Controversy Associated With Bath and Body Works
This is not the first time that Bath and Body Works courted controversy. In 2022, it faced flak for releasing an apparel line featuring Kente cloth designs to celebrate Black History Month. The company was charged with cultural appropriation. This was followed by the company pledging to improve its diversity and even donating $500,000 to support related ventures.
