Fred Perry stops selling famous black and yellow PB polo shirts after brand was adopted by far-right Proud Boys group in America and Canada
Fred Perry has announced it will stop selling of one of its iconic polo shirts after it was adopted as the unofficial uniform of a far-right group.
The famous fashion brand will no long ship its black and yellow PB tops to both Canada and North America.
The move is a response to the £65 polo shirt being adopted by far-right group 'Proud Boys', whose members are regularly seen wearing the tops at its marches and demonstrations.
The British clothes maker said it was 'incredibly frustrating' that the far-right group, who believe white men and western values are 'under siege', had been 'appropriated' by the Proud Boys.
In a statement, the brand said: 'Fred Perry does not support and is in no way affiliated with the Proud Boys.
Fred Perry has announced it will stop selling of one of its iconic polo shirts after it was adopted as the unofficial uniform of far-right group the Proud Boys (pictured: Members wearing the polo shirts)
The famous fashion brand will no long ship its black and yellow PB tops to both Canada and North America. Pictured: The official website has already changed to reflect the announcement
The British clothes maker said it in a statement (part of which is pictured here) was 'incredibly frustrating' that the far-right group, who believe white men and western values are 'under siege', had been 'appropriated' by the Proud Boys
'It is incredibly frustrating that this group has appropriated our Black/Yellow/Yellow twin tipped shirt and subverted our Laurel Wreath to their own ends.
Who are the Proud Boys and why have they adopted Fred Perry as their uniform?
The Proud Boys are a right-wing group founded in 2016 by Canadian writer and political commentator Gavin McInnes, co-founder of Vice Magazine.
The group have been labelled a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Centre in America.
However Mr McInnes, who has distanced himself from the group in 2018, previously rejected this classification, claiming that the group is 'not an extremist group and not have ties with white nationalists'.
Instead the group claim they are merely spreading an 'anti-political correctness' and 'anti-white guilt' agenda.
Members have adopted black and yellow Fred Perry polo shirts, particularly ones with 'PB' on them, which match the initials of the group, as their unofficial uniform.
The group have rallied in Portland, Oregon, several times in recent years and draw large crowds who show up to oppose their presence in the liberal city.
In the most recent one, around 1,000 people gathered at the Proud Boys rally in Delta Park, on Saturday.
The Proud Boys clashed with Facebook earlier this year, when the social media giant announced it had removed nearly 900 accounts linked to two far-right groups whose members may have been plotting to send armed agitators to George Floyd protests.
The social media giant removed accounts connected to Proud Boys and American Guard, both of which it considers to be hate groups.
The social media company, which also owns Instagram, said they removed 358 Facebook accounts and 172 Instagram accounts connected to Proud Boys.
'The Fred Perry shirt is a piece of British subcultural uniform, adopted by various groups of people who recognise their own values in what it stands for.
'We are proud of its lineage and what the Laurel Wreath has represented for over 65 years: inclusivity, diversity and independence.'
The statement added: 'The association with Proud is something we must do our best to end.
'We therefore made the decision to stop selling the Black/Yellow/Yellow twin tipped shirt in the US from September 2019, and we will not sell it there or in Canada again until we’re satisfied that its association with the Proud Boys has ended.
'To be absolutely clear, if you see any Proud Boys materials or products featuring our Laurel Wreath or any Black/Yellow/Yellow related items, they have absolutely nothing to do with us, and we are working with our lawyers to pursue any unlawful use of our brand.'
The latest statement comes after the brand's chairman John Flynn spoke out about the association in 2017, saying the groups ideals were 'counter to our beliefs'.
The Proud Boys, founded in 2016, have been labelled a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Centre in America.
However the group's founder, Canadian writer and political commentator Gavin McInnes, co-founder of Vice Magazine, rejected this classification, claiming that the group is 'not an extremist group and not have ties with white nationalists'.
Instead the group claim they are merely spreading an 'anti-political correctness' and 'anti-white guilt' agenda.
Mr McInnes officially distanced himself from the group in 2018, stepping down as chairman.
The group have rallied in Portland, Oregon, several times in recent years and draw large crowds who show up to oppose their presence in the liberal city.
In the most recent one, around 1,000 people gathered at the Proud Boys rally in Delta Park on Saturday, while a group of 500 left-wing counter-protesters massed at nearby Peninsula Park, leading to fears of clashes.
However police say the groups largely dispersed without serious violence - though they are investigating claims of an assault made by a person documenting the rally.
Supporters at a rally in August last year were pictured displaying stickers which read, 'Antifa Hunting Group', in reference to the self-described anti-facism group.
Proud Boys members also reportedly appeared at the Unite the Right white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia.
The group have rallied in Portland, Oregon, several times in recent years and draw large crowds who show up to oppose their presence in the liberal city
The group have rallied in Portland, Oregon, several times in recent years and draw large crowds who show up to oppose their presence in the liberal city
Fred Perry: The clothing brand started by a tennis icon which became synonymous with 'Mod' culture
Founded by Wimbledon champion Fred Perry, the fashion label, which bears his name, has been adopted by various British subcultures since its creation.
The brand originally started with tennis shirts which were launched at the 1952 Wimbledon tournament to immediate success.
The clothes maker later added coloured version for table tennis - where white clothing is not allowed.
These polo shirts became popular with the Mod subculture during the 1960s.
Mods eventually splintered off into different groups, including a more working class-focused subculture known as the skinheads.
The skinheads originally denounced fascism and many described themselves as apolitical - rather focusing on class and music tastes.
However, the group divided in the 1970s as a small number of its members swung to the far right.
The clothing brand is still to this day synonymous with Mod culture - along with other cultural icons such as the Lambretta scooter and power rock bands such as The Who.
The Proud Boys clashed with Facebook earlier this year, when the social media giant announced it had removed nearly 900 accounts linked to two far-right groups whose members may have been plotting to send armed agitators to George Floyd protests.
The social media giant removed accounts connected to Proud Boys and American Guard, both of which it considers to be hate groups.
The social media company, which also owns Instagram, said they removed 358 Facebook accounts and 172 Instagram accounts connected to Proud Boys.
They also removed 406 Facebook accounts and 164 Instagram accounts connected to American Guard.
'In both cases, we saw accounts from both organizations discussing attending protests in various US states with plans to carry weapons but we did not find indications in their on-platform content they planned to actively commit violence,' the company said.
The use of Fred Perry by the Proud Boys is not the first time the fashion brand has been adopted by groups.
The fashion brand, founded by Wimbledon champion Fred Perry in 1952, has been adopted by various British subcultures since its creation.
It has long been associated with the Skinheads, who originally denounced fascism.
However, the group divided in the 1970s as a small number of its members swung to the far right.
The decision to release its recent statement on Proud Boys was praised by many on Twitter, including one user, who tweeted: 'I will be wearing a Fred Perry today - love the mod, ska culture - the fashion, music etc.
'Let's get back to the days where the iconic polo was for all subcultures and not associated with racism.'
However others disagreed. One Twitter user said: 'I've been a customer for decades and this is such a silly, meaningless statement.
'Yes the PBs are rather uncouth but they certainly are not racist.
'The polo has been worn by other groups who did have sketchy associations and it didn't damage the brand. Neither will this.'