Many teenagers and young adults have shopped at or heard of Urban Outfitters, a store that sells everything from clothes to books. The store has an edgy, hipster feel to it.

Controversy surrounds the recent released of an acid-washed pink Kent State University sweatshirt. The shirt’s red splatters, presumably resembling splattered blood, prompted the complaint that the shirt mocks the tragic 1970 Kent State Massacre.

Both The Huffington Post and The Washington Post reported that Kent State officials “take great offense to a company using [their] pain for publicity and profit.”

Urban Outfitters took the item off the market and released a statement saying they “deeply regret that this item was perceived negatively”.

I think that the store did make reference to the Kent State Massacre by having the blood splattered design, but they thought that it would be hip and trendy and that buyers would not take it offensively.

In 1970 a group of Kent State students were protesting the Vietnam war and where brutally shot by the National Guard. Urban Outfitters’ display of this event is very distasteful and looks very bad on their part.

The negatively perceived sweatshirt is not the first time that Urban has been put on the spot for controversial articles of clothing.

I personally have seen a shirt in the store that said “Eat Less” which mocks the serious problem of eating disorders that plagues many teenage girls.

There was also controversy over a men’s shirt that was for sale with a Star of David superimposed over what could be construed as prison stripes.

I think that Urban has gone too far to try and be edgy, hip, and cool. They are now becoming tasteless.

As a person who has shopped at Urban before, I will now be more cautious about the subliminal messages that lay behind their clothing.