The New Zealand Human Rights Commission has said there is “no place” in New Zealand for the “It’s Okay To Be White” message.
The HRC has condemned the slogan after New Zealand-based online auction site, Trade Me, were found to be selling products featuring the phrase.
The seller’s product description said: “Counter-signal the Marxists and other anti-white bigots with these decals, featuring the most successful /pol/ meme of 2017!
“An ‘It’s Okay To Be White’ T-shirt will let people know that you are not a racist who thinks that a child can be born into sin if others with the same skin colour have acted badly in the past.
“Wear this shirt as a white person to troll your local Communists, or wear this shirt as a brown person to troll stuck-up middle-class urbanites. Either way, it’s funny!”
A spokesperson for the HRC told NZ Herald, “This phrase is known to be associated with white supremacist groups around the world.”
“Despite what the advertisements say, it seems likely that the stickers and t-shirts are intended to convey a message of intolerance, racism and division. There is no place for that in New Zealand.”
The slogan “It’s Okay To Be White” originated on 4chan in 2017 in response to Leftist anti-white bigotry. The phrase has since been portrayed by mainstream media as a hate symbol akin to the swastika.
Trade Me told Newshub it did not intend on removing the product because the slogan did not breach its rules and regulations, however, it now appears the product is no longer available for purchase.