The Florida GOP isn’t the only one profiting from the detention center known as “Alligator Alcatraz” by selling merchandise. A subset of Etsy buyers and sellers began a boycott of the online marketplace this month over its decision to allow “Alligator Alcatraz”-branded merchandise on its site.
Today, this sort of merchandise — including T-shirts, hats, mugs, stickers, patches, and other items — can be found across e-commerce platforms beyond Etsy, ranging from large retailers like Amazon to online marketplaces like eBay to seller storefront providers like Shopify and more.
However, Etsy users have taken particular issue with the company’s decision to allow the merchandise, which celebrates the controversial ICE detention center in Florida, where detainees are held in cages and subjected to reportedly horrible conditions, according to outlets like the AP, Newsweek, The Washington Post, CBS, The NYT, Tampa Bay Times, and others.
Etsy, its users argue, has a published Discrimination and Hateful Content Policy, which lists “immigration status” as a protected class — meaning both behavior and merchandise cannot contain or display discriminatory behavior toward the listed protected classes. Boycotters believe that Etsy is in violation of its policy, as the company notes that prohibited behavior includes not only hate speech, but also “content which directly or indirectly contains violent or degrading commentary against protected classes listed above.”
Etsy’s site has 20 pages of “Alligator Alcatraz”-branded merchandise Image Credits:Etsy screenshot
The Etsy boycott has been loosely organized on social media platforms like Meta’s Threads and Reddit so far, where there are thousands of posts and comments. For example, one Threads post that references the boycott received more than 26,500 likes and a Reddit post exclaiming “What are they thinking over at Etsy?!” has 69,000 upvotes.
When searching for the term “Boycott Etsy” on Threads, you’ll find a long stream of posts debating the boycott, many of which have hundreds of replies. Some Etsy sellers worry their online businesses will suffer as a result, even though they are not selling this type of merchandise. Others, including those who disagree with the Trump administration’s policies, believe the merchandise is protected free speech.
On Reddit’s Etsy Community and elsewhere, boycotting sellers are threatening to close their shops, and buyers say they’re closing their accounts. There are also references to the boycott across other social media sites like X, TikTok, Facebook, and others.
Because the effort is so far only loosely organized, it’s difficult to tell how many are participating. According to data from app intelligence provider Appfigures, Etsy’s iOS app in the U.S. hasn’t slipped in the ranks at this time — it’s been in the top 20 apps in the Shopping category throughout the month.
Etsy is not alone in profiting from this type of merchandise, as some sellers and buyers have also pointed out. Many major selling platforms have not banned “Alligator Alcatraz”-branded products at this time. Among those TechCrunch reached out to, only Amazon was willing to defend its choice to host this merchandise, pointing us to its policy around controversial products and content. The company also said the “Alligator Alcatraz” merchandise was compliant with its guidelines.
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