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Fred Perry stops selling polo shirt in US and Canada due to Proud Boys link

Clothing brand Fred Perry has said it will stop selling one of its polo shirts in the US and Canada because it has been “appropriated” by an organization widely considered far-right.

The firm, named after an English tennis champion, said it was “incredibly frustrated” that the Proud Boys group had adopted its famous black and yellow shirt.

Proud Boys has “subverted” the Fred Perry brand to its “own ends,” the company claimed.

“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,” the firm said in an announcement.

<who> Photo credit: YouTube </who> McInnes wearing a modified Fred Perry shirt.

“We are proud of its lineage and what the Laurel Wreath has represented for over 65 years: inclusivity, diversity and independence.”

Fred Perry said it had stopped selling the shirt in the US in Sept. 2019, and will not sell it there – or in Canada – again “until we’re satisfied that its association with the Proud Boys has ended.”

Proud Boys was founded by Canadian commentator Gavin McInnes, who also helped found Vice Media, though he has since distanced himself from the group.

“Fred was the son of a working class socialist MP who became a world tennis champion at a time when tennis was an elitist sport,” Fred Perry chairman John Flynn said in 2017.

“He started a business with a Jewish businessman from Eastern Europe. It’s a shame we even have to answer questions like this. No, we don’t support the ideals or the group that you speak of. It is counter to our beliefs and the people we work with.”



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