Over the years, Urban Outfitters, a store best known for catering to hipster culture and fashion, has managed to offend quite a number of groups including the Jews, African Americans, Native Americans, and the gay community. The last controversy stirred up in April when the company churned out shirts with a six-pointed star on it that greatly resembled the Star of David patch worn by the Jews as forced by the German Nazis. Just 2 months later, they have successfully angered many religions with the use of the hamsa symbol in one of their collections.

The hamsa, also known as khamsa, depicts an open right hand and is commonly used as an amulet in many societies. Throughout history, this symbol of protection has been believed to provide defense against the evil eye and can usually be found made into jewelry or wall hangings. The hamsa, used by the Muslims and Levantine Christians, has also found its way into the Jewish tradition after its widespread use in the Islamic world. Thus, there is a slight variation in their names, with the symbol being known as the hand of Fatima, the hand of Mary and the hand of Miriam, respectively.

The new hamsa designs have sparked the outrage of Internet users who are now circulating the pictures around social media networks. Many claim that they are boycotting the company while urging others to do the same. With words like ‘insulting’ and ‘dumb’ being associated with Urban Outfitters, it does seem like the company’s latest attempt at being edgy is about to blow up in their face. It does not help that one of their designers have apparently claimed to state, “Fashion makes racism cool.”

For some, Urban Outfitters’ use of the hamsa was justified. Parul Sharma, a Mumbai based author, states that while the religious symbol may not be a fashion statement for one person, it could be the case for others.

Mehreen Kasana, a student based in Lahore, Pakistan furiously disagrees. “My religion is not a fashion statement. Do not wear the Khamsa or any other religious symbol when you don’t know what it signifies and aren’t part of that faith. Commodifying someone’s belief is disrespectful and pathetic. The instant reaction to someone’s offense in this case is, “Oh lighten up! It’s just a shirt!” No. It isn’t. It’s an insult and people will call you out on it. If you still choose to trivialize someone’s faith, don’t expect us to be nice,” she says.

Urban Outfitters may have well stirred up another controversy for themselves in an attempt to garner attention, perhaps taking the phrase ‘any publicity is good publicity’ to heart. For a brand so focused on making a statement, commonly showing disregard for the boundary between art and respect for other religions,this may well be the recipe for success.

In previous cases, after mounting pressure from the public, the company discontinued the production and sale of some of their items bearing sensitive nature, although it is still unclear what actions will be taken for this controversial product.

The article Urban Outfitters Under Fire for Use of Hamsa Symbol appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

LONDON, UK – Pop-up shops in some of the capitals trendiest shopping areas can offer jobseekers valuable work experience exposure, says reed.co.uk

As more and more high-street retailers continue to fall victim to higher rental and business costs in London’s most fashionable shopping areas, forcing multiple outlet closures, the number of temporary pop-up shops occupying the vacated space is seemingly on the rise. reed.co.uk, one of the UKs leading job sites, claim these temporary ventures are providing opportunities for jobseekers to gain relevant work experience exposure, especially if they wish to attain future retail or sales jobs in the capital.

Since the turmoil of the economic recession in 2008 heaved financial pressure on retailers, many of the UKs leading high-street brands have had to shut-up-shop in some of London’s most bustling shopping areas. Continual rises in costs have only added to the number of closures, however the vacated space has meant smaller, pop-up shops are now emerging across the capital; giving smaller traders the chance to benefit from higher levels of shopper traffic, even if it is for a limited time only.

With relevant experience highly sought after by prospective-employers, reed.co.uk say jobseekers, aiming to improve their chances of gaining jobs in London are now considering applying for work experience in pop-up shops; especially if, in the past, financial constraints have limited the time available to undertake unpaid placements.

The job site admits that one of the biggest barriers jobseekers face when undertaking work experience placements is financial sustainability- after-all most placements do not offer a wage or any sort of payment for work. However with pop-up shops only trading on a temporary basis (most are only typically open for a month at a time), reed.co.uk claim attaining work experience for such a short period of time is ideal for those unable to commit for greater lengths of time.

“Pop-up shops provide ideal opportunities for jobseekers to gain valued work experience, quickly. Not only can they gain great exposure to the retail industry as a whole, but they can see how smaller businesses can thrive in such a competitive environment,” said a spokesperson for reed.co.uk.

“However it’s not just small clothing retailers taking advantage of higher levels of shopping traffic- as you’d expect. Many restaurant owners, artists and top-brand designers, including Vivienne Westwood and Stella McCartney, have also jumped at the chance to temporarily rent from previously vacated shops, so there are plenty of work experience opportunities in several career sectors.”

With pop-up shop venues set-up across London, most notably in Shoreditch, East London (Box Shoreditch- the world’s first pop-up mall), Carnaby Street and Camden, shop owners have exposure to some of the busiest shopping areas in the world.

Image Courtesy of  Kamira / Shutterstock.com

The article Work Experience Opportunities Opening all Over London appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.