Ottawa-based company Shopify is resisting calls to cut ties with the controversial site accused of being anti-LGBTQ2 and known as “Libs of TikTok,” which sells merchandise on the e-commerce platform plastered with allegations of “grooming” of children.
The products use the words “Stop grooming our kids,” an allegation that the Anti-Defamation League says has increasingly been deployed over the past year by some on the far right without evidence against members of the LGBTQ2 community; in particular, those who do drag.
Multiple prominent LGBTQ2 voices, including Helen Kennedy, the head of LGBTQ2 advocacy group Egale, and openly queer Ottawa city councillor Ariel Troster, have called on Shopify to stop providing its services to the vendor, which did not respond to questions from Global News sent on Monday.
However, Shopify told Global News it has no intention to sever ties with the vendor.
Read more:
Mass shooting at gay nightclub in Colorado leaves at least 5 dead, 18 hurt, police say
Read More
A spokesperson said “this merchant is not currently in violation of Shopify’s Acceptable Use Policy.”
That policy specifically bars Shopify users from promoting or condoning “hate or violence” against “people based on … gender” and “sexual orientation,” among other categories.
“Shopify’s growth has meant that we have increasingly become the platform of choice for anyone looking to sell to their consumers online. We host businesses of all stripes and sizes, with various worldviews,” the spokesperson said.
“We take concerns around the merchants on our platform very seriously, and Shopify’s AUP outlines the activities that are not permitted on our platform.”
The calls for Shopify to cut ties with the vendor come on the heels of a mass shooting at a gay nightclub in Colorado, which left five dead and 18…
Click Here to Read the Full Original Article at : Politics…