New Balance Sneakers Have Now Been Claimed by Neo-Nazis

The company responds (poorly) to an endorsement from a Neo Nazi blog.

New Balance is not having a great week. Just days after the athletic brand came under fire for having claimed a Donald Trump presidency would lead to good things for their company, Neo-Nazis have now claimed New Balances as "The Official Shoes of White People." Over the weekend, the founder of the site “Daily Stormer," a white supremacist blog, urged supporters to buy and wear the label's sneakers.

What started as some outdated views on trade coupled with a desire to appear patriotic (despite the fact that they only make 25% of shoes sold in the U.S. here) after the election has grown into a kind of P.R. nightmare for the Massachusetts-based company. And things have not improved with the release of multiple non-statement statements issued in the aftermath, the most recent of which posted yesterday:

Of course we agree with New Balance's statement. Who wouldn't? And while they seem to be inching closer towards a condemnation of Donald Trump's ideologies, they continue to tip toe around the issue that gave rise to this brouhaha in the first place. Why not just say, "We do not want the endorsement of Neo Nazis and if you are a Neo Nazi please stop wearing our shoes." Is it really that hard to plain and simple condemn Neo Nazis? This seems to be an attempt to not ostracize any customers or even, yes, Trump himself.

New Balance might actually still believe that Trump can stop global economic trends to save their five factories in the United States (which employ a total of 1,000 people, a number dwarfed by Nike's 6,800 factory employees in the United States). This faith in the president elect to stop globalization comes despite the fact that most economists believe globalization is inevitable even if they don't like its effects. According to Quartz, "The structure of TPP may not be perfect, but it is expected to increase real incomes in America by $131 billion and boost exports by $357 billion by 2030."

Additionally, the Trans Pacific Partnership, which New Balance and Trump both stood up to, would actually help the emerging economy of Vietnam by bringing things like shoe factories there. New Balance makes 5% of its shoes in Vietnam, though they don't seem too concerned with the well-being of these employees. (The TPP would also raise working condition standards and wages in Vietnam.)

Now, this is all good news if you're any shoe company not named New Balance. Actually, we'd like to take this opportunity to relieve Under Armour Curry Lows, Reebok Classics, Nike Air Monarchs, and Kirkland Signature sneakers of their "old white guy" status.

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